Hi,

Here is Chapter 2 and it gets a bit juicier!

Chapter 2: The Performance

Next day in the evening …

London Hippodrome Theatre, London

"How do I look?" Margaery twirled in her chosen dress, a low cut but tasteful frock.

"You always look amazing and you know it," Podrick replied offering his arm to the lady.

Margaery stuck out a tongue as she hooked her arm with Podrick's, "Women like praise Pod."

"Why must we after every performance attend the after-reception?" Viserys complained as Kenna tightened his bowtie.

"Oh, come off it," Margaery laughed, "You love the attention just as all we actors do."

"They are our patrons without their generosity the theatre wouldn't do nearly as well and they like to discuss our performances," Kenna said flattening down the hem of her flowing dark blue dress.

"I think it is time we arrived at the party we are the guests of honour and the reason why they came," Podrick chimed.

Kenna placed her hand on Viserys arm and the two pairs walked down the corridor.

The two pairs walked into the crowded room to clapping and clinking glasses. They started to mingle with practised smiles and humble responses to the praises that were sung about their performance.

Eventually, Viserys arm tensed around Kenna's and she was dragged away from their current conversation after hasty goodbyes. She saw their new destination; Rhaella Targaryen and Tywin Lannister.

The two old friends were chatting comfortably with glasses of wine resting in their hands. Kenna had known Tywin was in her box during the performance but she never considered he would stick around after the performance.

How interesting, she thought as they converged.

"Mother," Viserys greeted, with a beaming smile and respectfully pecked Rhaella on the cheek before exchanging a handshake with Tywin, "Lord Lannister. May I introduce my fellow co-star Lady Kenna Arryn."

"You are extremely talented my dear," Rhaella complimented.

Kenna leant into Viserys slightly, "It helps when you work with other talented actors as well."

Viserys rolled his eyes but a grin was firmly placed on his face. Actors did like praise after all, more so from fellow actors.

"Another wonderful performance my son," Rhaella said with warmth.

"Lord Lannister I am surprised you came. I didn't think you were one for the theatre," Kenna said in a smooth voice.

"My sister watched this production a few weeks back and she had nothing bad to say."

"Nothing bad to say," Kenna repeated, "I'll take that from Genna Lannister considering she is a retired actress."

"Both your Lysander and Hermia were enjoyable to watch," Tywin said, taking a glass of wine of a wandering waiter and passing it to Kenna, "just as my sister assured me."

Rhaella feigned shock and touched Tywin's arm, "A compliment? Are you well dear friend?"

Tywin shook his head slightly at his friend's antics and took a sip of his wine as Kenna did the same.

"Father could not attend?" Viserys asked, glancing around the room.

"Rhaegar was performing with the London Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall tonight as well," Rhaella explained.

No one missed how Viserys's shoulders slumped. Rhaella reached for Viserys arm, "Your father will attend next week and I know Daenerys wants to see you perform as well."

Viserys nodded mutely and Rhaella left Tywin's side to slide an arm through her son's, "It is getting late, escort me to my carriage?"

"Of course, Mother."

Kenna and Tywin bid the Targaryen's farewell.

"That boy needs to stop living in his father and brother's shadow," Tywin remarked.

"A hard thing to do when your father was Prime Minister and your brother is the youngest ever principal conductor for the London Orchestra. Besides I'd say he needs to care less what other's think and just enjoy life."

"A strange thing for an actor to say."

"I perform for myself. The challenge of becoming someone else for a few hours. Not for other people's enjoyment. That is just a by-product."

Tywin eyes brushed over her attire and settled on her face, "Sounds like you are trying to escape yourself."

Kenna let out a little chuckle, "We all have our masks."

Tywin let the non-committal reply go in favour of a question, "Are you and the Targaryen boy an item?"

"Still trying to solve my husband issue for me I see," Kenna teased before a knowing smirk formed, "Sadly, I'm … not his type. How goes Tyrion's and Jaime's search for –"

Tywin ushered Kenna towards the open balcony area before she could complete her sentence and closed the glass doors behind him.

"They are currently tracking down a shipment of materials sent to a warehouse in east London."

"Why?" Kenna said leaning back on the balcony ledge while nursing the wine.

"The materials appear to match what Cersei would need to build a bomb of the magnitude the Mockingbird desires," Tywin responded walking to join her.

Kenna bit the inside of her lip, "I wonder what the Mockingbird's intended target is."

"He aims to displace me and according to Tyrion he hates the aristocracy."

"That doesn't narrow down the potential targets but Tyrion is the brightest mind I have ever met, if anyone can figure out who and what the Mockingbird is up to it is him."

"Perhaps that makes him the most likely target of all," Tywin mused.

Kenna let the thinking silence stretch as they both looked over the dark streets of London and heard the occasional naying of a passing horse dragging a carriage over the cobbles.

The door behind them open and both spun around to see a slight man with combed greying hair approach them.

"I hope I am not interrupting anything but I just had to congratulate you on another exquisite performance."

Thank you," Kenna half curtseyed, "Considering that is perhaps the sixth time you have seen it I consider that a triumph."

Tywin looked between Lady Kenna and the newcomer. They were clearly familiar with each other.

"Lord Lannister please allow me to introduce you to a family friend. This is Professor Petyr Baelish, he is the Lucasian Professor and Chair of Mathematics at Cambridge University. I believe he specialises in … no don't tell me," Kenna wagged a finger at the Professor, "ah yes, you specialise in Chaos Theory."

"Pleasure," Tywin said as their hands clasped in a firm handshake.

Once Baelish had regained his hand he turned to Kenna, "If you had taken up your university place I wager you would have been one of my finest students."

"I prefer the stage to an old musty study room."

"The academic in me weeps but the theatre lover rejoices."

"My sister is the enlightened thinker in our family, not me."

"Her latest paper on genetics was fascinating to read," Baelish nodded thoughtfully, "But I digress we must be boring Lord Tywin reminiscing about old times and family."

"By all means reminisce away. I must be getting back to my manor," Tywin said taking Kenna's hand and placing a soft kiss on the top before nodding at Baelish and disappearing through the balcony doors.

Baelish and Kenna both leant forwards on the balcony ledge.

"Checking up on me?" Kenna said suddenly, all air of polite charm now since evaporated.

"I like to make sure my investments are doing what they promised," Baelish coyly retorted, "and you and your sister were quite a large investment."

"Well one is on the arm of a Prince and the other … well how am I doing?"

"I calculated a forty percent chance that Lord Lannister would show up tonight."

"You only gave me forty percent," expounded Kenna sarcastically.

"It is not a comment on your allure but on your quarry's resistance to past seduction attempts."

"What is your prediction for me getting into his bed?" Kenna asked, watching Tywin climb into his waiting carriage below.

"It was eight percent but I have now revised that to seventeen upon tonight's showing."

Kenna's face contorted around a wicked smile as the sound of horse hooves started to fade into the distance, "And getting him into my bed?"

Baelish turned to her with faint amusement evident on his features, "Your job is to keep Lord Lannister distracted and keep me informed on what his children are up to. Nothing more."

"You know I need the challenge to keep my wits sharp and besides I am doing those both effortlessly. I'm Jaime's friend, I work for Tyrion and Tywin Lannister actually left his manor to go somewhere other than his beloved gentlemen's club. I'd say I am doing my job and on this point, Tyrion is tracking the route of the shipment of materials you obtained for Cersei so I hope she works fast because I reckon, she has only a few days at most before her brothers find her if you don't intervene."

Baelish absorbed the information with a twitch of his lips and moved his mouth to her ear, "Do not concern yourself with my plans and by all means have at your challenge my dear but don't get too attached to your plaything. He won't be around next week."

"I thought our focus had shifted to another?"

"I am capable of fighting two adversaries at once," Baelish said, brushing down his hair, "and the Spider is a much more … intricate problem to solve."

"Are you sure he even exists?"

Baelish gave her a deep smile but looked down into the dark street below, "Just because you can't see something doesn't mean it isn't there. The Spider has been in London a long-time and yet his presence is almost undetectable."

"It sounds like you admire him … or her."

"He hides his motives and desires well. Makes it hard to understand what he will do when I usurp Tywin Lannister and bring his empire crashing down around him."

"You are worried about what the Spider might do?"

"He is an unknown quantity and I do not like unknown quantities," Baelish said, checking his golden pocket watch, "It is getting late."

"Yes," Kenna responded feeling the biting touch of the cold air.

"I truly enjoyed your performance tonight, Lady Kenna, and I look forward to your future ones with equal measure," Baelish said, gliding away from her and back into the still crowded room of theatre patrons.

Kenna inclined her head but knew his comment hadn't been aimed at her performance on the stage but rather her performance off it.

You might not enjoy my grand finale as much as you think, Kenna rebuked as she let the tension dissipate from her shoulders before returning to the warmth of the inside.

Author Notes:

This chapter gives you more insight into the characters and reveals some things (yes Baelish and Kenna are on the same side in this story!) and introduces (kinda) Varys.

For anyone unclear on the Hermia and Lysander compliment Tywin gave Viserys and Kenna, those are the characters they were portraying in the play - Midnight Summer Dream. Podrick and Margaery were playing Demetrius and Helena.

I know Chaos Theory was only invented/discovered in the 1960s and this story is set in the late 1800s but it was too Baelish a thing to leave out due to time differences so just run with it :D

Reviews

Supremus85 – Wow yeah. When I was researching I was like King Edward … King Eddard? And I think having the Starks as the crown was a nice refreshing twist instead of shoehorning Aerys or Robert into the position because I've had enough of that in AUs.

Ksyushangel – I like mixing up the setting between Tywin and Kenna because it allows me stretch out their relationship and see what happens under different circumstances. Detective Tyrion and Doctor Jaime are back next chapter and there is a nice family reunion scene as well.