Disclaimer: I don't own A Song of Ice and Fire and Dragon Age

The Phoenix and the Griffin

Chapter 19: The knight and the Handmaiden

It had been a week since Leo had bound the old king of the Reach. He remained in that region during that time, hearing of how Dayk Amell was hosting a grand melee in Highgarden. Knight's from the Stormlands came, an entourage led by Renly Baratheon. The brother of the king himself hosted a ball and the leftovers had gone to the small folk. Leo ate with them, though he knew at some point he was to eat with the supposed nobility. Working with some of the local merchants, he learned that the Tyrells were well loved in the Reach, none more so than Margaery Tyrell. She had gone to many of the orphanages, given coin to the poor.

'Yet, she's never cared for the sick, never worked the field,' Leo thought as he carried a dying man up a hill.

His mind was demented in some way, speaking of a great battle with the Devil of the Trident. The man's war stories were remarkable, he had apparently slain dozens of Stormland knights. But he never got credit, instead Mace Tyrell praised Randyll Tarly, and took credit himself. Leo hated that, generals were called great warriors, but who was to say they were really the strong ones. They composed the strategies, but men of actual strength and ability carried out those strategies. The man he carried was one of those men, and wrought with flees, gout and some sickness of his throat, he didn't have long left. Leo carried him to a hilltop he ranted about, where he met the love of his life.

"Oh I would have married you, I would have married you," he said.

"Too old for my taste," Leo chuckled.

He laid the man out on the grass and let him reminisce. Let him have his peaceful death, and squeezed his hand, pretending to be his son. It was a good death for the man, believing he had made something out of his life. Leo would have liked to have known the old man's name, if only because none of the other supposedly good people of Highgarden did.

When the day of the melee came, Leo put on his red coat, chainmail and the boots, gloves and plates of brown armour for his arms. For a helmet he purchased from one of the blacksmiths an iron helmet with a visor. It didn't match the rest of his armour, but Leo wasn't in the fight for style. Forty knights had gathered from across the Reach and surrounding areas. Leo participated using the sword he had taken from that Lannister champion. His act of charity was forgotten when he unleashed the murderous rage within him. Crashing the giant blade into his opponents, he brought down nobles and hedge knights. Around him he noted opponents that distinguished themselves, knights whom others in the crowd noted. Mace Tyrell, the flat slob that he was, whispered in the ears of Renly Baratheon whenever knights like Emmon Cuy and Guyard Morrigen brought down opponents. With a swing of his sword, Leo put them both into the mud, their respective and pretty yellow and green armour stained and dented.

Despite the blindness in his eye, Leo would not be deterred from fighting. He altered his technique to compensate and trained harder. There were knights in this melee that Renly wanted for something. He would bring them all down, every last one of them. Robar Royce was parrying a Hedge knight's axe, hitting the man in the side of the head with his pommel. Leo grabbed the man's arm, pulling it back and tripping him. When Robar rose to fight, Leo smacked him with the flat of his sword, the knight sliding across the dirt until he hit the barrier. Sir Parmen Crane fought well against a couple of knights, but Leo broke his sword and dented the armour on his back. Leo's sword was stopped by two blades locking together, a hedge knight. Kicking the man's chest plate, Leo shoulder barged him and kicked his head into the dirt. He ran across the mud, bringing down Bryce Caron. There were a few knights left, ten, then within seconds four.

Dayk Amell was taking part, engaging Loras Tyrell in a duel. Loras was better with the sword, but Dayk fought dirty, kicking dirt into Loras's visor. The knight of flowers lived up to his name, his armour decorated with the golden rose of his family. He was graceful, yet performed every technique with precision. That and there was a rage in him, Leo could tell that inside he wasn't a prim and proper noble lad. Dayk though had a much stronger rage, a murderous rage. Dayk used his sword as a club, striking at Loras with the pommel side and then kneeing him in the head as he fell.

That left Dayla Amell and Brienne of Tarth. Though Brienne had the build of a man and was in full blue plate, Leo knew who she was. Watching her fight with Dayla also told him that Brienne was good, very good. Of all the fighters, she was the best, strength, ferocity and a mastered technique. So Leo wanted her out of the fight, out of respect for her skill. With a spin, Leo threw the giant sword across the square. It struck Brienne in the side, the crowd gasping as she slammed head first into the ground. Not enough to kill her, but enough to leave her out of the fight. At best she might have a head ache for a few days.

Dayla and Dayk Amell, his rival's siblings. Both competent fighters, Dayla though was better than Dayk. Leo drew the small hammer he took from a brigand. Both Dayla and Dayk seemed to want to team up, approaching him together. Tilting his head and adjusting his footing, Leo parried Dayla's sword, and deflected Dayk's slash. Catching Dayla's sword with his gauntlet, he directed Dayk's sword to the ground and kicked his helm, dazing him. Dayla pulled her blade free and Leo shoulder barged her, making her nearly topple. He hit her with the handle of the hammer, then with the blunt end. The arm, then the knee, enough to bring her down but not permanently injure her. He didn't want to break her, he wanted his rival to meet her and gain another person to weaken him.

But for Dayk Amell the take down was less graceful, less graceful but a spectacular one. He managed to knock Dayk's sword out of his hand. Throwing his hammer aside and grabbing Dayk's fist, Leo gripped Dayk's neck and lifted him off of the floor. Pouring all his strength into the lift, Leo raised Dayk high before slamming him against the ground. There were cheers and jeers alike, some calling the victory dirt. But it was a victory, and Leo took off his helmet and basked in both the praise and the curses. Leo saw someone in the crowd he recognised, her hair had been curled and she wore a fancier dress than the last one she wore. But it was unmistakably the woman from that lake.

Kira watched the melee, but as her lady bellowed, taunted and chided her children, she could only keep her eyes on one of the fighters. That young man from the previous tournament her ladyship attended. He who toppled the Lannister giant, whom lost his eye, but had made Revka smile because of the stories he told about Thedas. Thedas, a land magic had not yet forgotten, a land Kira wanted to know more about. Revka was quiet, keeping away from the pain that place brought her. It wasn't just Thedas that fascinated the young woman, the knight himself was fascinating. He fought with such ferocity, struck with incredible force and had that sadistic grin. Yet so far he had proven himself to have valour in the eyes of other knights, and he had a wit, and he was capable of respect that most knights weren't. Most men just saw her body, her position as Revka's handmaiden, they didn't see her.

When the night came, the feasting started and those whom fought well enough were celebrated. A toast was raised to the 'Chimera knight' as Leo had been called. Leo, no last name, a man who was nothing to them. Just like she was, a nobody daughter of no one. Yet he had achieved something, and he tilted the cup. But a moment later, she saw him cast the contents of his cup into a plant pot. He winked at her when he did this and put on a smile as other knights crowded him. Lady Revka was chiding both Dayk and Dayla, waving her finger at the two of them. In that moment, Kira retreated to one of the balconies and looked out at the gardens of the Tyrells. Never before did she think she would be in a place like this.

"It isn't there's you know," a voice spoke from behind her.

His voice, she turned her head and saw him, wearing a black scale coat that went to his knees. He walked to her side, sniffing the air and shaking his head in dismay.

"Fake!" he said.

"What do you mean Sir Leo?" Kira asked.

"The great garden of the Tyrells, sure they paid for it, but the effort, the painstaking lengths to grow perfect flowers, to maintain that perfect balance of moisture, not too dry and not too wet, to maintain the perfect size, too big and the flower will kill itself. The effort to plant those seeds, to ensure they grow, all of that was down to low paid, underappreciated servants, people who got up early, often without break to work on this wonderful sight you see before you," Leo explained.

"But as you said, the Tyrells paid for it," Kira said.

"But they will never understand the power there is in building something yourself," Leo retorted.

He turned his head to her smiling slightly.

"What?" she tilted her head in confusion.

"I can already tell you're bored of this place, of these dullard, do you want to see where a real party can take place?" Leo asked.

"My lady warned me about men with that kind of proposal," Kira said.

"She's wise, but I'm not aiming to get you into bed, or even against the wall, truthfully I want to leave this place and I wanted you to see the real kind and generous people of the Reach," Leo explained.

He offered her his hand, and for a moment Kira was afraid. But when she took hold of his hand, she could feel a warmth in it. His grip was soft, tender not at all like this 'tight grip-strong character' nonsense she would hear of.

Then they were dancing, not in some grand hall but on the grass. Fires were around them, makeshift tents formed of bed sheets cast aside by nobility and any food that could be afforded by small folk. Rabbit, grain from the bumper season and the odd game they were able to sneakily hunt. But the music, the music echoed through the trees, along with the rhythmic clapping and laughing of the party goers. They weren't the cleanest of people, but they revelled in their chance to celebrate. Lines of people danced with Kira and Leo, joining arms and spinning wildly. Kira clapped her hands together, then clapped them to her knees and joined hands with Leo again.

They left the line of dancers and settled on a log that was being used as a chair. One of the peasants offered them cups filled with a brew from a barrel. Kira drank and moaned in bliss, sweet honey mead. She tilted some of the contents down her throat, drawing a chuckle from Leo.

"Far better than the wine and ale they offer in the halls isn't it?" he asked her.

"Yes, certainly better than anything they offer in king's landing," Kira said.

"I'm glad you enjoy it, I was afraid that time in that place would take away your memory!"

"My memory of what?" Kira asked.

"Of being poor, of not having a lot. When everything goes your way, when everything is fine and luxurious, you lose your appreciation of the great beauty there is in the dirt," Leo explained.

"Beauty in the dirt? I've never heard that before," Kira was intrigued, but confounded by Leo's statement.

"Nature, there's a great beauty in it. And a great tragedy in building a town or a city over it. But I'm digressing from my previous point, the dirt, the gutter, the streets, 'low born' there is a beauty in them and in that struggle, and in the celebration of their success, hell, in the celebration of their life. Parties get boring for those high born idiots, life is the game, celebration is the game. But celebration is life for those they see beneath them.

"Here, with nothing but some logs, dirty sheets and homemade instruments, they created a joyous time. They coordinated a dance greater than anything the high folk could do, and above all every bit of food, drink and company, they appreciate as if it is their last. That is the most beautiful thing, how one sees their life. Never wasting a moment with ambition and greed, appreciating their family and their friends.

"And by struggling through the dirt, raising their crops, making their money through hard and honest labour. Well quite frankly it makes them far better than those people who took their fortune from a sword point, or sold their own child off for a dowry. They're better because their fortune, however small or however long it takes for them to make it has been made by their own hands, through force of will and effort alone, they didn't have to order someone to get it for them."

Kira listened to every word, and held on to the meaning of Leo's rant and what it revealed about him. He was a charming fellow, with a blood lust, a sense of humour and an appreciation for diamonds in the rough. And he possessed a hatred of the methods the nobility of the world used to keep their fortunes. Self determinism was what he appreciated above all else.

"The way you speak, I've never heard a knight speak with such wisdom," Kira said.

"One doesn't need to be a knight, or some well educated Maestar or noble born to be wise. There are people out there whom have never read but one book in their lives, never composed any written word and yet have more intelligence, but know more about the world than the scholar," Leo explained.

"The truly wise," Kira whispered.

"Yes the truly wise!"

As Leo mused on this, across the seas, in pursuit of a wise man, Daylen Amell entered Denerim. There, he was confronted by a knight serving Loghain. Ser Landry believed every accusation against the Grey Wardens and accused Daylen of killing Duncan and the King. He challenged Daylen to a duel, but Daylen refused, stating he was not responsible for the deaths that occurred at Ostagar, and again confirmed Loghain's abandoning the field.

'You will be responsible for the death of an innocent,' he told Landry.

Insulted, but giving into Daylen's logic and persuasions, Landry abandoned his revenge. Daylen would go onto deduce that an apprentice of Brother Genetivi, actually wasn't an apprentice. After drawing answers from the cultist through ice magic, (the promise that the man's hands would not have to be amputated due to frost bite) Daylen and his companions were set on the path to Andraste's ashes.

Leo though remained by the side of the handmaiden, looking out at the fields of Highgarden.

"All of this was built by the true builders of Highgarden, of the Reach, these people whom have the power to make wonderful dreams a reality," he stated.

"What you say denounces all the praise shone upon nobility," Kira said.

"Nobility," Leo scoffed. "If they ended up on 'the wrong side of history' then they simply would have been called the descendants of murderers. But no, they take, murder their rivals and get called nobility afterwards."

"But there are those whom strive to be truly noble, like the Amells," Kira said.

"Do they truly?" Leo asked.

He knew the answer for one. For even as Daylen endured the intense colds of the mountains, he strived to help others. He found the sword of the Sten, grew closer to Zevran and learned of his part Dalish heritage, gifting him with Dalish gloves. Morrigan told him of her mother's secret, of the immortality she possessed. Flemeth extended her life by possessing her daughters. Morrigan charged Daylen with taking her mother's life, but Daylen went there with Alpha, Sten and Zevran for a different reason.

"Why is Morrigan with me, why is she really with me?" he asked the witch of the wilds.

"Oh, you believe there to be some other ulterior motive?" Flemeth grinned.

"You never do anything without a reason, you may speak like a madwoman, but you have a reason for doing things don't you?"

"Oh my boy, don't always look for reason in people," Flemeth's voice seemed to shift, for a moment she almost sounded like an ordinary, if not scolding woman.

"You will not allow me to leave will you?" she asked.

"Not if you're still a threat to Morrigan," Daylen said.

"Is this love? Or do you truly consider her a friend? Poor boy, that naiveté will disappoint you one day!"

She raised her hands and transformed, and the flames she spat out consumed Daylen and his party. A great yell came from the flames, Daylen gripped his staff, gritting his teeth together and conjuring his barrier. The red dragon narrowed her eyes, seeing the clouds of darkness around Daylen. She flapped her wings and took to the skies. On his quest for Andraste's ashes, Daylen had to face a dragon again. Local herders and pilgrims had been harassed by the creature, worshipped by a cult whom falsely believed it to be Andraste. Without fear, Daylen sought the dragon out and together with his allies, brought the dragon down. He ripped his blade through the neck of the creature and walked the rest of his way covered in the dragon's blood.

"The true wonders of the world are not in dragons or magic, in gods or kings, but in what regular people build, incredible things, fantastical stories," Leo stated.

"I love stories, they were always a way for me to escape," Kira said.

"Well, I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours," Leo grinned and Kira slapped his arm.

"All right then, once upon a time..."

"Oh no, you can't start stories like that anymore," Leo said and again Kira shoved him.

"Once upon a time during the reign of the Gardener king, before the rise of dragons, the Green knights fought and protected the land and its people from the wrathful spirits that came from the beyond. Amongst the green knights was a simple squire, of the humblest of births, yet he was brave. The Gardener king's daughter was taken by the wrathful spirits, and erected in their forest a great wall of roots. The Gardener king had many daughters, and his sons were already married, so his advisors told him not to send knights. He wept, he could not sacrifice his soldiers out of fear his enemies would use his weakness, yet he loved his daughter so.

"The squire though, mustered his courage. He snuck through a gap in the wall of roots. Sneaking through the forest, he avoided the eyes of the great tree giants the spirits possessed, and came upon two great beauties. One was a woman, a woman of the forest, skin flawless, but her hands were like bark. There was an otherworldly beauty to her and she called to him, urged him to abandon his quest. But he also saw the princess, and he was captivated by her too. Some said she was not the most beautiful of the gardener king's daughters, yet she had grace, innocence. Taking his knife, he freed the princess and ran through the forest with her. The nature spirit screamed, spikes of root rising from the ground.

"'No one rejects me,' she yelled in anger. The roots she summoned pursued both the squire and the princess. He managed to squeeze through the gap in the root wall, and pulled the princess into her arms, just as the roots reached her. He held her, running back to the gardener king's army. Once he saw his daughter safe, he yelled to his troops to unleash flames upon the forest. Volleys of flaming arrows rained down on the forest, destroying the wrathful spirits, whom became fearful spirits, for they had faced the wrath of a gardener king."

"So the squire saved the damsel, happily ever after right?" Leo asked.

"Actually, though the king rewarded the squire with a knighthood, his story would not end well," Kira said.

"As most stories set in Westeros end," Leo groaned. "Let me guess, beheaded for treason? Stabbed to death by his own troops, killed at a wedding, poisoned? Betrayed everything he stood for and was then stabbed by the one he loved, or maybe he did the stabbing of the princess and was subsequently exiled to the wall, whilst an emotionless cripple got to be queen and the sister, who pretty much betrayed his trust got to be a queen."

Kira raised her eyebrows in confusion.

"Sorry...I'm remembering another ending," Leo said.

"Well the story of the squire turned knight continued, as you may have guessed, he and the princess had indeed fallen in love with one another. And though the Gardener king respected the knight greatly and adored his daughter, the marriage would have produced no dowry, no alliance and no status," Kira explained.

"She was already arranged to marry wasn't she?" Leo asked and Kira nodded.

"To a seemingly minor family, but the love between the knight and the princess was strong, she begged her father and the knight challenged her betrothed. Both however killed one another. Her betrothed had no close relatives to inherit his estate, so out of pity her father gave the estate to her. She would grieve ever more, but also plot," Kira grinned. "For the knight had left her pregnant, and from the flower that marked the bastard's name would come a new Sigil!"

"A rose," Leo clicked his fingers and Kira pouted.

"I wanted to reveal that, yes, it's a popular myth about the origin of the Tyrell family, some nobles actually use it as the prime example for the rumour that the women of the Tyrells run the family," she explained.

"Wow, now that's a story, love and tragedy, but love even when it ends in death doesn't always need to be considered a tragedy," Leo said.

He leant his head back on the grass and looked up at the stars again. Kira put her head over his, looking at him for an answer.

"Oh you wanted mine, well, you'll think it boring, doesn't have the shock stories from Westeros have, it fits the mould too much," he stated.

"Breaking the mould and shock can get boring too, the problem with those stories is that they're all trying to be one another," Kira said.

"True, all right here's a story from Thedas. A story of two mages trapped together in a grand tower, as most mages were. It wasn't a perfect life, but they lived happily together. They could not truly marry, but one was the others and vice versa, behind the pillars that kept the tower up, they kissed and made love. Their love itself would have been forbidden, for she was an elf, and he a human. Yet both loved one another deeply, because they both had such great love for life and the world. They loved one another, and desired in the future to protect the world they loved.

"But though they were both brilliant students, their love was not unnoticed, and they were not without enemies. An evil and jealous student, whom desired power and glory, discovered the affair. During his test, he made a deal with a monster for more power. He wanted this love to end, he wanted his confinement to end, he wanted to rule over all!

"Slaughtering his templar guards, he cut down the human mage, truly killed him. Then continued his rampage through the tower. The elf though, discovering her lover's body, shook her head and said 'no, no, you will not have him, what grace has been given to me, let him be spared, save him,'. She knelt by his side and put all of her being and magic into one final kiss. A kiss that filled the mage with her life force, the very light of her soul. Forever more he would carry a part of her within him.

"Filled with righteous fury, he chased down the villain and both fought one another in an epic showdown of magic and determination. Fire, lightning and steel shook the tower, both mages of never relenting, never stopping. Both wanted to kill the other for different reasons. For the mage of light was consumed by the desire to avenge his love. Yet, that part of her calmed him, levelled him and he fought smarter than the dark mage. From his hand and his love, he summoned a grand blade of magic and cut through the dark mage's chest.

"'I was born to be a king, I was born to rule, this cannot be,' the evil mage screamed before he fell from the tower, to his watery grave!"

Kira remained awestruck by the story and the great passion Leo had recounted it with. In truth, he liked to believe that some part of Daylen had been augmented that day because of Surana's death. The adrenaline, the rage? Or perhaps her life-force added to his own truly did make him stronger. Whatever it was, he conceded Daylen killed him that day, at least that part of him that had enjoyed that moment. Now he revered that bond and the strength Daylen gained from it.

"But it was still tragic right? She died!" Kira said.

"True, but she lived happily whilst she could, and he would live on from that day, live the life she couldn't and go on to fulfil the dreams she could not. To help others, to save others," Leo said.

"So his story did not end?" Kira asked.

"No," Leo smiled. 'In fact I'd dare say it's just beginning!'

He smiled at the thought of one day meeting Daylen again, of creating a 'chapter 2' to their story. Suddenly, Kira's lips collided with his. The young woman moaned into the kiss, but the knight's eyes were wide like saucers. He had been frozen by the sudden surge of passion the girl, whose company he did enjoy, had suddenly showed him. His hand shook as he traced a finger across her cheek. Kira slowly pulled her lips away, looking at Leo with anticipation. He drew his hand away and looked to the side.

"I am sorry Sir, I misinterpreted..." Kira shook her head and rose, brushing the creases out of her skirt.

"Kira wait..." Leo stopped himself.

'Why am I so concerned for her, why do I care how she feels?' he wondered.

Kira waited for his answer, waited for him to say just one thing that would make her feel better. But he said nothing, so she ran, keeping her head low and crying over the humiliation. Leo put his finger to his lips, it was hardly the first kiss he had had. But it was the first to give him the warmth a kiss was apparently supposed to bring. He grit his teeth together, he wasn't the one that was supposed to feel this way.

'I can't afford to have a weakness like this!'

Denerim

The journey had been long and arduous, but Terra eventually made it to Thedas. She gave some of the coin Revion gave her and got passage from Ostwick to Ferelden with a sea captain named Isabela. She was a great woman of Rivain, strong, commanding, none of her men tried to flirt with her or force themselves on her, on either of them.

"I let them go all out at the ports sweet thing, it's important for them to let out their frustrations before they go on a voyage, I myself partake in the brothels, you could join us," Isabela said.

"Thank you for the offer, but I'd rather do what I was hired to do and then get home," Terra said.

"Of course, get home to that mother of yours," Isabela smiled.

They had gotten along well, and to pay her way, Terra worked. She wasn't a great crewmember, but by the end of the voyage she had learned to hoist a sail as well as the next sailor, and she scrubbed the decks and dishes too.

"Sweat is good after sex dear, but dirt, not so good. How about a bath before you set off on your journey?" Isabela asked.

Initially Terra thought it would be a simple bucket of hot water, which she would be lucky enough to get at home. But the Pearl offered something more, a tub big enough for Terra to fit in, hot water with bubbles of soap in. She leant her head back and moaned, relaxing after a voyage. The staff at the pearl ran a bath for Isabela too, and Terra blushed seeing the woman's muscular toned legs, and tanned skin. There were several marks on her back, but other than that, Isabela didn't have a scar on her. Terra looked at her hands, wiping the soup away. She couldn't clean the calluses of someone whom had worked the fields.

"You have a better body than you think sweet thing," Isabela said, tying her hair back and resting in her tub.

"Compliments come easy from those who have something already," Terra said.

"Don't tell me you didn't jump for joy when the Lord of an important family gave you a task to complete, I've heard men of the Amell family, the branch family at least are quite handsome," Isabela explained.

"He is handsome, and married, and...I don't know, he seemed to speak as if he admired me, but he barely knew me. For all he knew I could have taken the sword and sold it but..."

"But you're smarter than that, you know there's more to that lord isn't there?" Isabela asked.

"I've seen lords in the Meadow before, looking down at us, pitying us, looking to use us," Terra said, disgust in her voice.

"It's what all lords want to do, they'll look to use you for their game, or get you into their beds, and yes I mean both lords and ladies. They like to pretend to be disgusted by the thought, and they like to hold it over one another, but I guarantee you the appetites of the supposed nobility will make you scream in horror," Isabela explained.

She got out of the bath, the foam flowing down her body. Terra closed her eyes for a moment, blushing, before gasping as Isabela walked to the bag holding the contents of what Terra had to be delivered. She removed the sword from the bag, lifting it with both her hands.

"My, you are a strong little one to be able to carry this, be careful though, it could give you a bad back," the pirate queen said. "Not usually my kind of weapon, but I can see it is a very good copy of the dragon slayer blade!"

"Copy?"

"You didn't actually think it was the original sword did you? That's like saying the Shield of the Knight herself belonged to Ser Aveline, there are hundreds of pieces of equipment that smiths attribute to Ser Aveline, the same to the Dragon slayer. Swords have been given the names connected to the legend, 'Victory Peace', 'Balmung', 'Fafnir', so many names and so many claiming to be the real thing. Still, it is a good sword, most are just symbols for the lords but this is truly a blade to kill monsters," Isabela explained.

Putting the blade down, Isabela walked around Terra's bath, making her uncomfortable.

"So Revion Amell, as you said before, handsome yes but..."

"Off, or, I'm not sure how to really describe it, he didn't seem right, it was like there was nothing inside of him, as if he was pretending to be a person," Terra said.

"He wouldn't be the first lord to hide insanity, weren't all those dragon kings and queens mad?" Isabela asked.

"Maybe they all were," Terra muttered.

"It's best not to let it bother you dear, focus on your job and what you need to do," Isabela said.

"Yeah deliver a sword to a mad lord's brother, whom he believes is a hero," Terra leant her head back and sighed. "But it's for my mother, it's for her, for our lives to be better!"

Highgarden

Kira sat with Revka, awaiting breakfast with Lady Margaery and Lady Olenna Tyrell. The queen of thorns commanded her servants with a similar challenging tone to Revka's. But Kira got the feeling Revka didn't like sitting with the woman.

"So how are you finding Highgarden Lady Revka?" Olenna asked.

"Warm, the food's good," Revka said and Kira suppressed a smile.

"You've spent too much time in the Crownlands it seems, what of your handmaiden, has she been well?"

"She has a tongue to answer, perhaps you should speak to her," Revka said.

"Oh I care not for how the girl is, simply how the girl is serving you, is she able to open a jar for you at least?"

"I open my own jars, I lost a hand not my entire arm!"

"Of course I apologise, but what does she do for you? Be a companion, you are not that brutish surely."

"Lady Olenna, Kira does as I ask, as any whom serve our family does, whether it's making a bed, helping me with my hair or assisting me with preparing my horse. The same way you and Margaery have servants to do everything for you," Revka explained and Margaery shifted uncomfortably.

"I do things for myself."

"Oh pish posh girl we do nothing for ourselves, I've never cooked a meal in my life, why do so when I can simply pay another to do it? What we do is assist in the running of our family and household, have you been back to the Meadow recently Lady Revka?" Olenna asked.

"I exchange letters with Sister Bella," Revka said.

"And how is your son? Oh I'll just answer that, he's left rule to a diseased commoner," Olenna smirked.

"He rules alongside Oliver, alongside a council," Revka said.

"Of course, ah but let us not discuss politics, Revka when will you marry? I have widowed cousins whom seek companionship," Olenna stated and Revka nearly choked on her juice.

"I have no interest in marriage at the moment. Only seeing my children live to raise children of their own, to find a happiness that is their own," Revka explained.

"Including this son of yours whom lives so far away?" Olenna asked.

"Daylen, yes, I wish him to find happiness however he can," Revka said.

"And have you received a letter from him, or regarding him yet? Is he still accused of treachery and murdering the Ferelden king?"

"Daylen Amell is innocent of those charges!" Kira spoke up before Revka could.

"Oh do you have spies in Ferelden then, magic raven's that fly to wherever you are? No disrespect Lady Revka, but you must concede the possibility that your son is not whom you want him to be," Olenna explained.

"I do concede that, but the Grey Wardens did not betray King Cailan, not when they're in the middle of a fight with the Darkspawn, not when there is a Blight to stop," Revka said.

"Blight? Darkspawn? Come now, these things..."

"You haven't been to Thedas Lady Olenna, you don't know what is real there," Kira said.

Olenna shook her head.

"You are right I have not been there, but I know the world better than you, including how pathetically embarrassing it is throwing yourself at a hedge knight whom will laugh at you...I mean you are not a pretty thing nor do you have a name of importance," the Queen of Thorns explained.

"He, he didn't laugh!" Kira said.

"Oh, did he take you into his tent then?"

"Grandmother," Margaery scolded her.

"He, he didn't he..."

"He recoiled didn't he, the act speaks for itself, understand what you can do and stick to it girl!"

"The same could be said for you Olenna," Revka huffed, standing up.

"Lady Revka?" Olenna blinked in confusion.

"I told you once Lady Olenna, do not speak to any whom serve House Amell like that, you insulted Oliver, tried to embarrass my handmaiden and you speak of things you do not understand regarding my oldest son. Thank you for the invitation, but it seems the company has cost me my appetite," Revka politely bowed before walking away.

Olenna shook her head in disapproval. That was the problem with Revka, to her, she always felt that the Amells thought themselves too good for the game. Kira followed her mistress, looking at her with more admiration than ever.

"I would have broken her if she opened her mouth again," Revka said.

"What of guest rights?"

"It works two ways you know, why do you think my father got away with 'striking' Lord Walder Frey?"

"He hit Walder Frey?"

"It was a flick on the man's nose, of course Walder made it worse than it was, started swearing up a storm. Then father said...you know what, I won't repeat it, but strangely Frey get's a smile on his face and says 'You're all right Amell,' as if father had spoken his language," Revka explained.

"Is that a true story?"

Revka looked over her shoulder and grinned at Kira. Despite the near tears that were in her eyes, Kira smiled. But her feelings of sadness returned when a blonde figure crossed their path. Revka narrowed her eyes at Leo, tightening her hand into a fist.

"Good day to you sir," she said.

"Lady Revka, Lady Kira!"

"I am not a Lady," Kira said.

"I was going to be leaving Highgarden soon, I wanted to speak with Kira before I left," Leo said.

"That is her choice to make," Revka said.

"Yes, it is!"

Revka was taken aback by Leo's fierce tone, but looked towards Kira. She hesitantly nodded her head. The lady of the Amells stepped aside for a moment, letting Kira and Leo take a seat on a garden stool.

"I am sorry sir, for the misunderstanding last night," Kira said.

"No," Leo shook his head. "I am the one who should be sorry, the reason I reacted the way that I did, is because I didn't think that...that someone could look at me the way you did," Leo explained.

"Why would someone not see you as I do?" Kira asked.

"I'm not as good as I seem Kira, no knight is, we're all just men whom use blood to rise. How does that make us good people?" Leo asked.

It was a question he was truly asking. 'Goodness' didn't exist to him, or anyone whom had taken a life. Heroic king Robert Baratheon was a monster, bold knight Barristan Selmy was a monster, honourable Ned Stark was a monster. All the supposed noble people were monsters, for they had blood in their decisions and their blades. From the perspectives of those whom suffered from their decisions? Of course they were evil.

"And I intend to be the evil," Leo found himself saying.

He felt Kira take his hands.

"Life isn't as simple as good or evil, there are cruel acts yes, but I don't think that one person could be called pure evil, from my perspective, you are a strong man whom has a goal in mind and doesn't let others principals hold him back from that dream. That is admirable, it can lead to someone respecting you, admiring you, wanting to be by your side," she explained.

She looked so beautiful to him in that moment. He wanted to hold her tight, protect her, kiss her with every bit of passion and love he had. But he wasn't even sure if he did have love. For so long he had survived on hatred, and the joy of taking a life or overcoming adversity.

"Is there something wrong with how I look?" Kira asked.

"No, you're more beautiful than Margaery Tyrell, than any lord's daughter," Leo said.

Kira smiled before pushing her lips against Leo's. He closed his eyes, losing himself in the feeling. Stroking her cheek, he gently pulled her closer. Settling into his arms, she moaned and deepened the kiss. Revka came around the corner and coughed. Both separated, Kira's cheeks as red as her hair.

"I want to know you, it's what I want," she said.

"I will write to you when I go Westward," he said and she smiled.

She wrapped her hands around his waist and a smile crept across his face. The rare genuine smile he knew he would only have for her.

He rode out of Highgarden, looking back over his shoulder.

'Love, is it possible for me to find it, and if so, will it stop me from pursuing my goal?' he wondered.

And he remembered the Handmaiden's kiss.

Next Chapter 20: The Prisoner

Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. Make no mistake, Leo is still a monster (at least in my opinion, feel free to disagree) but I'm trying to make him a more complicated monster than he was before.

Next time the Targaryen siblings and Fausten fight through the House of the Undying, alongside an ally whose identity will change the course of history.