I don't really have much to say here. Thought this chapter was longer than it is when I look back at the word count. Anyway, sorry about the time and please let me know what you think, I didn't really read over it that well.
I do not own PJO or HoO or GoT
Rated M
"Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance"
-Samuel Johnson
Percy POV
Percy stood in front of Lord Stark's room at 9 in the morning. This was usually the time Ned left after breakfast with Sansa and Arya. He also needed to reveal his dragon/drakon secret to Ned, because he wouldn't be able to hide it from the man forever. Percy figured he'd might as well tell him now rather than him find out some way later.
Right now, the two were devouring some raw steak he summoned with Hestia's powers, back in his quarters. They had woken up around the same time Percy did, with a very sore back from sleeping on the ground. They just hopped out of the smoking remains of the night's fire like it was nothing. The worst part was they already bigger than yesterday. It wasn't much, but definitely noticeable.
When Percy woke up he summoned himself breakfast, and then them some steak so they would hopefully be occupied while he was gone. He had a mild fear of coming back to charred or torn remains of his bed or furniture, but oh well.
The knob next to him jiggled as Ned opened the door, saying his goodbyes to the girls for the day. "Percy," he smiled softly. Percy grinned back; happy Ned had started to use his preferred name.
"Before we set off for the day's adventure, I need to talk Lord Stark," Percy said. The man frowned, obviously thinking something was wrong, but gestured to go ahead. "Well, it's actually easier if I just show you," Percy said sheepishly.
"Where is it?" Ned asked.
"Just in my quarters. I'm not really sure what you'll think of it," Percy admitted. He was mildly afraid of what Ned's reaction could be. They walked through the now familiar halls, and to the hall where most of Ned's guard stayed. He walked to the door, fearing the worst, and creaked the door open.
He was met with two pairs of eyes looking intensely at him, right at the entrance. "Well, here they are," Percy opened the door wide, and Ned peeked in. Immediately his eyes were as wide as saucers. He quickly ushered Percy inside and slammed the doors closed behind him.
He grabbed Percy's shoulder's roughly, "Where did you get those!" he whisper-yelled, "Do you have any idea what this means? What this can cause?"
Percy looked at the man still, not backing down. "I do. I hatched them last night," he told Ned.
Ned let go of Percy and collapsed on Percy's bed, hands on his knees. "You-you hatched them?" he questioned. His face was pale as a ghost.
"Yes. They hatched while I had them in the fire. I don't even know where their eggs went to be honest," Percy had looked for the shells when he woke up but didn't see them.
"Dragons…" Ned muttered, "You have two dragons, living in your room in the Red Keep." He was mostly talking to himself at this point.
Percy knew this wasn't the best time, but he couldn't help but blurt out "Dragon. One of them is a drakon."
Ned looked at him even more confused now. "What is a drakon?" he asked.
"It's like a dragon in ways, but it can't fly, and most spit venom instead of fire. It's more like a snake with legs, but they usually grow much bigger than dragons. It depends on the species," Percy was worried about that problem as well.
"Seven hells…" Ned murmured. He looked at the two creatures looking up at him curiously. They kept looking back and forth between Percy and Ned, like asking Percy if they could trust Ned. "They're yours alright," Ned said. Percy hadn't actually interacted with them yet other than feeding them, but he could see it in their eyes that they trusted him.
"Yes. I've had the eggs in the sack I've been carrying around for ages. I decided to try to hatch them last night, using-" Percy hesitated "Unconventional methods."
"And were you thinking about the consequences while you did this?" Ned looked at Percy.
He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Not really?" he asked more than said. He couldn't tell if Ned was angry at him or confused. "I figured I'd show you now rather than you find out some time on your own. Plus, maybe you could help somehow."
"I can't say I have any experience in handling dragons. I don't think anybody does anymore," Ned told Percy. "There's a chance you could find a book about it, given the Maester allows you to use it without asking questions, which is doubtful." Ned stroked his beard, clearly deep in thought.
"Is there a chance I can just take them out? Show them to the city?" Percy asked Ned.
"Absolutely not. Not only would everybody in the seven kingdoms know within the week, but many would try to steal or buy them," Ned shut down that idea. "No, it's best we keep them a secret somehow. They are small right now, which is good. We can keep them in here for the time being," Percy nodded along. "But when they grow larger, we will need to find a place to hide them that nobody will go to, that still needs to be in the capital," Ned kept going. "The dungeons could work, but there are still no guarantees."
"Is there a place outside the Red Keep that could be close and more hidden?" Percy asked Ned.
Ned looked thoughtful for a moment. "There are caverns underneath the Keep in case the royal family needs to escape that are hardly used, but I don't know the layout well enough."
"You could ask the Maester for a map, say that they are just for assurance purposes," Percy offered.
"That could work," Ned agreed. "It isn't exactly urgent at the moment, but they will grow quickly. Dragons are famous for their growth period. I don't know about drakons." Percy withheld the fact that they usually just formed in disgusting bubbles on the ground in a place below and more dangerous than hell itself. "And there's the food problem. They have huge appetites from my recollection," Ned said.
"I can manage their food. I have several methods of getting lots of food easily, which I won't share at the moment," Ned looked at Percy inquiringly, "It's not stealing, I promise," Percy said smiling.
"You need to be careful with them. I will get the maps you need, but you must keep them a secret, understand?" Percy nodded vigorously. "Not even my daughters can know. It must be between you, and me," Ned opened the door, and quickly shut it again.
"We must go now. I'm sure there are more council meetings regarding that damned tournament," Ned sighed, "Leave them here, and be sure to lock your door." With that Percy and Ned left his room, Percy locking the door behind them with his key. He also made sure to leave several large steaks on the bed for the beasts in case they got hungry.
"Lord Stark," a man approached them. It was the same as usual, who always came to inform Ned when a council meeting was taking place. Ned's shoulders sank as he looked to the man. "Lord Renly has called a Small Council Meeting regarding the Lord Hand's Tournament." Percy snickered while Ned looked even more grim.
"Come along, Perseus, we wouldn't want to keep the Master of Law waiting," Ned turned and strode down the corridor. Percy fell into stride behind him, barely acknowledging the now-familiar castle around him.
He also noticed the lack of guards that usually patrolled the halls, besides Ned's own men. When the passed the throne into the Small Council Chamber, he noticed a man in the familiar Goldcloak outfit standing to the side of the door.
"Lord Stark," he acknowledged when they walked by. He narrowed his eyes slightly at Percy behind him.
"Eddard!" Renly came out of the open door for a man-hug, which Ned hesitantly returned. "Come, we have much to discuss," Renly strode into the room.
An echo of "Lord Stark" went around the room as Ned sat in his usual seat, flanked by the always empty seat of the king and the Master of Ships, who was apparently the king's other brother.
"Before we get started today, I would like to announce that I have endowed a new status as a small council adviser to this man with me today," Ned immediately announced. Percy spluttered for a moment before bowing his head.
"You honor me, Lord Hand," Percy said. He really was honored that he could have a say now, or at least some input.
"Lord Stark, surely you cannot expect us to trust some guard with decisions regarding the whole realm?" Baelish asked, looking at Percy. Percy sent his own death glare right back and grinned when he looked away quickly.
"What Lord Baelish means to say," Varys cut in, "Is that we do not know about this man and may not find need in another adviser."
"As Hand of the King, I can appoint any counselor to the Small Council I want," Ned glared at the group. "As such, I expect you to listen to him when he speaks."
"As you command, Lord Hand," the Maester said softly.
"Now, what is the trouble with the law, Renly, which caused this meeting?" Ned turned to Renly. Percy decided to just stand just behind Ned.
"I'm afraid there is trouble regarding the whole city. This tournament is causing crime rates to increase nearly tenfold," and so began the tedious talk.
Renly called the apparent Goldcloack commander, Janus Slynt, in, who'd been talking for nearly an hour about the city, and what he was doing to protect it. Percy tuned back in as Ned rubbed his head for probably the 10th time.
"I understand there is more crime in the city," Ned responded to the man's repeated phrase. "What do you need to deal with it?" he asked impatiently. Percy didn't blame him.
"It's the Hand's tournament," Janus said again "that's causing all this trouble, My Lords."
Ned wiped the sweat from his brow. "The King's tournament. I assure you the Hand wants no part in it." Percy shifted his feet again. He wondered how his dragons were doing right now. Sitting inside his quarters seemed more fun than listening to this guy talk.
"Call it what you will, Lord Stark, ser, the city is packed with people and more flooding in every day." He'd only mentioned that a couple hundred times. "Last night, we had a tavern riot, a brothel fire, three stabbings, and a drunken horse race down the Street of Sisters." Add it to the damn list.
Varys shook his head "Dreadful." Ah yes, thanks for the helpful input.
"If you can't keep the King's peace, perhaps the city watch should be commanded by someone who can," Renly threatened.
"I need more men," he explained.
Percy stepped forward, "You'll get them." All eyes shot to him. This was the first time he'd actually spoken during the meeting. "There are plenty of homeless on the streets. I walk past them every day. Recruit them. Offer them gold, shelter, anything to get them working,"
The man frowned. "I hardly think drunkards and thieves can help keep the peace," he snorted.
"They don't need to. Just have them in the right outfit. That'll at least put some pressure on the people," Percy continued. "If we can't control the capital during a tournament, why should anybody have faith in our services?"
Several Council Members nodded in tandem. "It could help solve two problems at least. Less people begging on the streets, and more protection," Varys offered.
"Forgive me, My Lords, but do you think the crown can add more expense to their debt?" the old Maester rumbled out.
"Lord Baelish?" Baelish turned to Ned. "You found the funds for the champion's prize, I'm sure you can find the money to arm a few men." Baelish nodded, scribbling something onto his parchment.
"How many men might we be… supplying?" Baelish asked.
"50, volunteers only," Percy announced.
"You may also have 20 of my household guard, until the crowds have left" Ned offered out.
"Thank you, My Lord," Janus said and finally walked out of the room.
"The sooner this is over, the better," Ned remarked, sipping his wine.
"The realm prospers from such events, My Lord. They give the great a chance at glory, and the lowly a respite from their woes," Varys said. Percy didn't have a problem with it either.
"And every inn in the city is full and the whores are walking bow-legged," Baelish smirked to himself while writing something.
Ned glared at his wine. "I'm sure the tourney puts coins in many a pocket," he remarked. Baelish continued grinning to himself. Ned started rising from his seat, "If there's nothing else, My Lords?" Percy was fairly sure the only person who wanted to get out of there more than himself was Ned.
Neither of them missed the looks sent to Ned, as each Lord walked off. Ned called to the Maester when he was on his way out. "I've been hoping to talk to you about Jon Arryn," he told the Maester.
"Lord Arryn?" the Maester turned slowly. "Oh, his death was a great sadness to all of us. I-I took personal charge of his care, but I could not save him." The Maester hesitated a moment. "His sickness struck him… very hard, and very fast.
Percy raised his eyes. Sounded like several Greek myths. "I saw him in my chambers just the night before he passed. Lord Jon, often came to me for council."
"Why?" Ned questioned.
The Maester raised his eyebrows and stood a little taller. "I have been Grand Maester for many years. Kings and Hands have come to me for advice since-"
"What did Jon want the night before he died" Ned interrupted. His face was hard as he stared sharply at the elderly man.
The Maester just shook his head absent-mindedly, "Oh, he came inquiring after a book."
"A book? What book?"
Percy could notice the Maester sweating a little bit more as the conversation went on. "Oh, I fear it would be of little interest to you, My Lord. A-a ponderous tome," he waved the subject away.
"No. I'd like to read it," Ned told the Maester. "Perseus, I'm sure you have matters to attend to," Ned raised his eyebrows at Percy. He heard the hidden message, and head for his own chambers.
As he passed Ned's room, he noticed Arya standing at the top of some stairs, balancing on one foot. "Lady Stark," he bowed lightly, then cocked his head at her. "Practicing for the tournament?"
She grinned for a moment. "Practicing my water dancing," she stated proudly.
"Water dancing?"
"Syrio is teaching me the Dance of Braavos. He said every day he would stand just like this at the top of his stairs, and that every fall would be a lesson," she told Percy. He still wasn't quite sure what water dancing was but nodded anyway.
"Well good luck to you, My Lady," he grinned and walked off. Reaching his chambers, he put a hand on the door and hesitated.
Then, fearing the worst, he creaked open the door to once again see eyes staring intently back at him. They were right at the entrance, almost on top of each other. "Hey little guys" he cooed. The dragon just snapped its jaws.
Percy swiftly opened the door all the way, and almost slammed it behind him. He noticed the steakless bed, and the red juices coating the floor. "Hungry?" he asked and summoned more. They appeared, one in each hand.
They immediately burst into action, jumping up and down in a frenzy. The dragon even tried flapping its little wings a few times. "Down. Down!" he pushed through them and put the steaks on his desk. "We're going to go over some discipline," he put his foot out to stop the drakon from slithering up the desk.
He took a knife he had on his desk and quickly cut the steak into chunks, separating them into two piles. Grabbing a chunk in each hand, he turned back to the pair. They were calm now, staring at the meat in his hands almost creepily. Percy vaguely wondered if they were looking at the steak, or his hands themselves.
"Now, you will be nice," he slowly leaned forward, holding his hands close to his body. Not a single muscle twitched in their bodies. He dropped each piece a foot away from his foot, and like a rocket they shot forward, devouring the small piece like it was the last meal they'll ever get.
The drakon snapped at the dragon quickly, not out of anger, but possession. Or so Percy hoped. "Hey! Don't do that," he scolded the drakon, knowing full well it didn't understand him. But, to teach him a lesson, he grabbed another chunk and quickly threw it to the dragon. The drakon looked on in envy. The dragon swallowed it whole and looked to the drakon for a second as if laughing.
He repeated the process, slowly feeding the two from the two steaks he cut up. Deliberately feeding them slowly made them have to be patient and lash out less. The drakon was clearly more anxious to get food than the dragon, though that wasn't to say the dragon wasn't frenzied.
He finished the piles and looked at them. They still looked at him with a gleam in their eyes. He groaned. "Fiiiine," he sighed and summoned 10 more raw steaks. Throwing 5 in one corner of the room and 5 in the other, he quickly escaped out the unguarded door and locked it behind him.
He wasn't sure if he could consider that a successful interaction with the pair but figured it could've gone worse. "Perseus," Ned's voice shocked Percy back into reality, as the man stared at him in amusement. "I'm sure your friends are preoccupied?" Percy nodded.
"Good. We have several more matters to attend to," he grinned and walked off, Percy groaning but following.
(*)(*)(*)
Percy walked behind Ned and Littlefinger. He honestly loved the nickname for the man even though he didn't know the meaning of it. It was the first day of the tournament, but Littlefinger had approached the pair early, asking to talk. They were in the gardens at the moment, as workers planted new seeds for the coming season.
"I hear you're reading a boring book?" Littlefinger asked about the book Ned borrowed from Pycelle.
"Pycelle talks too much," Ned hmphed. Percy kept it in mind that Pycelle, as innocent as he looked, wasn't quite who he said he was.
Littlefinger smirked. "Oh, he never stops. Do you know Ser Hugh of the Vale?" he asked, seemingly out of nowhere. Ned shook his head. "Not surprising. Until recently, he was only a squire. Jon Arryn's squire."
He paused for a moment to let that sink in. "He was knighted almost immediately after his master's untimely death." Percy thought about those implications. He obviously didn't know the previous hand, but from what he'd heard the man was loved by almost everybody.
"Knighted for what?" Ned questioned Littlefinger. Littlefinger shrugged nonchalantly. "Why are you telling me this?"
"I promised Cat I'd help you," he responded.
"Where is Ser Hugh?" Littlefinger shrugged again. "I'll speak to him."
"A singular bad idea," Littlefinger told him. "Do you see that boy over there?" they looked to one of two boys playing by a tree. He lowered his voice to a whisper. "One of Varys' little birds. The spider has taken great interest in your comings and goings."
Ned was deep in thought. Percy wondered the same question. Littlefinger gestured to another pair of people. "Now look there," there was an old man tilling the ground. "That one belongs to the queen," the man in question looked up at them, almost proving his point.
"And do you see that Septa pretending to read her book?" Ned nodded as he spotted her, and she, like all the others, was watching the pair closely.
"Varys or the queen?" Ned asked.
"No. She's one of mine," Littlefinger admitted. "Is there anyone in your service whom you trust completely?" Ned gestured behind him to Percy. Percy stood a little taller in pride.
"The wiser answer was no, My Lord," Littlefinger counseled him. "Have this paragon of yours sent to question Ser Hugh." Percy cocked his head curiously. He didn't have a problem with that.
"After that, you might want him to visit a certain armorer in the city," Ned slowed down. "He lives in a large house at the top of the Street of Steel." Percy could see the gears turning in his head.
He had the same feeling, like this was some kind of puzzle that everybody had already figured out. It almost felt like the Gods sending him to do some quest without telling him what it's about, even though they already knew.
"Why?" Ned asked as they stood still now.
"I have my observers, as I said, and its possible they saw Lord Arryn visit this armorer several times in the weeks before his death," Littlefinger hinted towards exactly what Ned was looking for.
Percy knew Ned was following the same trail Jon Arryn had been before his demise. He feared where it would lead. "Lord Baelish, perhaps I was wrong to distrust you," Ned admitted, looking down at his feet.
Littlefinger grinned, "Distrusting me was the wisest thing you've done since you climbed off your horse."
Percy and Ned looked at the retreating form of Littlefinger, and then at all the people around them. "Find Ser Hugh. Ask him about Lord Arryn but make it quick. I want you with Sansa this afternoon at the jousting tournament."
Percy nodded, "What about you?"
"I need to study that book Jon was so interested in. Something about this isn't right. Jon was loved by too many to be killed out of cold blood," Ned thought aloud.
"My Lord, perhaps now is not the best time?" Percy said while raising his eyebrows at the people around them.
"Aye. Meet me at my chambers when you talk with Ser Hugh," Ned told Percy and strode off back to the Keep.
Percy had no way of going about looking for a single knight in a city of almost 500,000. But he started with the Goldcloaks in the courtyard around the Keep. After none of them offered anything helpful, he strode out of the gates.
Getting his pouch ready with money in hand, he, once again, walked through the streets giving money to those he saw lying on the ground or in alleyways. His main target was the yard where the tournament would take place.
Most of the knights in the city had signed up for the tournament and flocked to the training fields around the hastily built jousting arena. Already though, tents were being put up and small buildings built.
He approached a Kingsguard who looked like he was watching the area. He had the classic armor on, and a brilliant white cloak strapped to the back of his armor. "Excuse me, ser," he said.
"Barristan Selmy," the man said and offered a hand, which Percy shook. "What can I help you with?"
"Do you know where I might find a Ser Hugh?" Percy had no idea what else to say to the knight.
Selmy raised his eyebrows. "He would be right behind you," he said pointing to the arena. "He should be measuring out the proper length for the joust at the moment," he informed Percy.
Percy could see a man in blue doing measured paces back and forth along a fence. "Thank you," Percy began to walk off, then doubled back. "Since I have you, do you know why he was knighted?" he asked, hoping to get as much information as possible.
Selmy's features scrunched up. "Not sure anybody does, really. Happened the day after his master's death. Odd, if you ask me."
Percy nodded, "Thanks, a lot, for helping me out."
"Anytime," Selmy once again offered a hand to Percy, who shook it. "Goodbye- sorry, I didn't catch your name?"
"Perseus," Percy said simply.
"Pleasure, Perseus."
Percy nodded with a smile and strode to where the man was still pacing. "Ser Hugh?" he called out. The man ignored him, choosing instead to keep pacing and muttering to himself.
"Ser Hugh!" Percy called more urgently.
The man turned to him, frustrated. "As you can see, I'm busy!" he shouted turning back around.
"I'm here on behalf on Lord Stark, Hand of the King" Percy announced.
He turned back to Percy, "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch your name. Ser-?"
"Not a knight," Percy stated.
The man looked at him smugly. "I see. Well, it just happens that I am," he went back to measuring.
Percy grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "I'm sorry, would you like me to ask Lord Stark to walk all the way from the Red Keep to ask you himself? I'm sure he would appreciate taking 2 hours of his already very busy day to talk to someone clearly so important," Percy snarked. He resulted back to his sarcastic self, already done with the self-centered prick.
Hugh sighed and raised his eyes. "What do you want?" he questioned.
"Lord Stark sent me to ask you some questions regarding your recent knighthood," Percy said.
"Well? Go on, I haven't got all day," Hugh man spat out.
"I know you were knighted recently, after the death of your former master, Jon Arryn, the hand of the king," Percy started.
Hugh kept looking at him. "If you already knew this, why bother talking to me?"
"I'm not quite done yet if you don't mind stopping interrupting," Percy hissed. "Lord Stark was wondering why you were knighted. He feels the need to document certain goings-on during or close to his time as Hand for the texts," the lie slipped off Percy's tongue.
"If he must know, I was knighted at the request of the Queen," he sneered.
"And what were the conditions of your knighting?" Percy coaxed the impossibly vague man.
"She appreciated my care and loyalty to my master, Jon Arryn. I stayed by his side day and night while he lay sick on his bed," Hugh told Percy.
Percy smirked "I'm sorry if my information is outdated, but if I'm correct Lordy Arryn was only sick for the good portion of a day before he died?"
Hugh hesitated for a moment. "Clearly your source in unreliable then."
"My source was the Grand Maester himself," Percy remarked. He knew he had Hugh pinned in a corner here "he told Lord Stark he was the one taking charge of Lord Arryn's health. He never mentioned a squire."
"Maester Pycelle is an old man. The possibility of him forgetting such a thing is noticeably clear," Hugh spoke about the Maester with little to no respect, not that Percy had much for him either.
"Hm. I'm sure," Percy smirked at him. Hugh looked back with a dark look. "Well, I thank you for you answers. I'll be sure to tell Lord Stark how helpful you were."
Percy strolled away leaving Hugh looking at his back. He could see the stands up around the arena, and a portion set aside for the royal family. He could hear the cries of people close by, stoked and energetic about the coming event. The echo of swords rang out as knights practiced for the coming challenge.
When Percy arrived at the Red Keep, he immediately made his way to Lord Stark's chambers. He was already later than he should've been, spending too much time walking through the city and talking to some random people.
He jogged up the steps and saw Lord Stark pacing outside his door, hands on his beard. "Lord Stark!" he announced himself. "So sorry I'm late. Got caught up on my way here." He apologized.
Ned relaxed as he turned to Percy. "No worries. You have 30 minutes before I would like you to escort Sansa and Arya to the tourney. In the meantime, I advise you tell me what you found out quickly and then check on your 'friends'."
"Of course. According to Ser Hugh, he was knighted by request of the Queen for his 'Loyalty' to Lord Arryn," Percy smirked when he said loyalty.
"So in other words, the queen knighted him for something she asked him to do," Ned remarked. Percy nodded. "And it had something to do with Jon Arryn," he added. Percy nodded again.
"Thank you, Percy. Jory and I talked to the armorer Lord Baelish mentioned," Ned told him.
"What did you find?" Percy asked.
"Robert Baratheon's bastard son," Ned let that linger for a moment. Clearly Jon Arryn was looking for the king's bastards, but why. "Now go. Wouldn't want to keep your friends waiting," Ned was serious when he said that.
Percy hurried off, catching the foot of a child rounding the far corner on his way. He quickly swung open the door and closed it behind him seeing the two actually curled up on his bed. They each perked their head up when they heard him enter.
They rose in synch and looked at him with their beady eyes. He summoned a steak for each of them and they dug in. They ate a ton of food, something Percy could hardly keep up with.
While he watched them eat, he tentatively reached out a hand. He inched towards the dragon arm outstretched. When his fingers made contact, the dragon flinched but made no other moment.
Percy stroked the small creature's neck, feeling it's rough scales. It wasn't what he expected them to feel like. As hard as they looked, they had a certain feel that made them fold around its skin. He could feel its little throat gulping down the steak, and it looked at him for a moment before going back at it.
He went to the drakon next, getting a similar reaction. He could see one of the drakon's eyes watching his hand reach toward it but made no motion when he made contact. Slowly, he rubbed the longer body of the drakon as it leaned into his touch.
Percy grinned and pet both of them with each hand, getting used to their unique feel. The drakon actually seemed to enjoy the treatment, closing its eyes a little and leaning in. The dragon didn't seem to mind either way, but he didn't appear to enjoy it as much.
When they finished off their steaks, they settled down, and the dragon climbed up his body and perched on his shoulder. It weighed more than it looked, given the protective scales. It nibbled on his ears a bit, but then just looked around the room. The drakon looked up at the dragon, almost with jealousy, but just curled up in Percy's lap.
Percy was afraid to move, fearing if he did either one of them would get scared and jump off him. But he also knew he had to go so as not to be late. When Percy stood the drakon slithered off his lap and onto the floor, but the dragon only flapped its wings a couple times to keep balance.
"Alright, come on," Percy shooed the creature off his shoulders, and it once again curled up on the bed. Given that they looked rather content, he decided not to feed them and left the room, making sure to lock it behind him.
He strode back to Ned's quarters and saw an entourage of people. Ned waited just outside his door with Jory, while Sansa, Arya, their nanny, and several house guards stood in the hallway.
The nanny was fussing with Arya's hair as they got ready. "Lord Stark," Percy greeted Ned.
Ned smiled gravely at Percy, "Right on time. Sansa and Arya are expected to be there, but I will not be joining you," Ned told the girls.
Sansa looked to not care less, while Arya protested, "Father! We won't know anybody there."
Ned knelt down and hugged her gently. "It will be alright. Mordane and Perseus will be with you," he told her. Arya looked less than thrilled about that but relented anyway. Ned moved and hugged Sansa awkwardly, who reluctantly hugged him back.
Percy could see the conflict in her eyes as she embraced her father. He understood how she felt. For much of his own life he wasn't sure how he felt about his father, Poseidon. It was only recently he grew to like and even love the man.
"Have fun girls," Ned called as the group set off. They walked through King's Landing with Lady at their heels. Percy chose not to give money out this time. He didn't want to get in a fight in front of the girls, though Arya may enjoy it.
They exited the city and to the grounds he was on earlier looking for Ser Hugh. It was complete now, full of people and sounds and smells. If he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine himself back at Camp. He frowned at the reminder of home and opened his eyes again.
The jousting arena was a simple but effective thing. Wooden stands to the side with a larger section for the royal family, and a dirt path separated by fencing. The Baratheon's banners, topped with a crown, were hung up around the area.
"Where's the king?" Aria asked to their side as they walked onto the stands.
"He's probably drinking," Sansa grumbled.
Morgana was quick to hush her "Sansa!" she whisper-yelled "Don't speak about the king like that! Especially in public!" Sansa muttered an apology while Percy smirked next to her.
They took a seat in the stands a few rows below the king's booth area. He could the whole royal family there, sadly including Joffrey. He noticed Sansa looking up at Joffrey and frowning when he didn't meat her gaze.
As they sat waiting for it to start, Baelish approached them. Percy groaned catching some frowns sent his way. Baelish stopped in front of him, "Do you mind moving so I can talk to Sansa?" Percy just glared at him, not moving.
"Sansa dear this is Lord Baelish, he's not- " Morgana started but was interrupted by Baelish as he sat next to Percy and leaned forward to meet their gazes.
"An old friend of the family. I've known your mother a long, long time." He smiled at the girls.
Sansa was about to say something, but Arya quickly cut in "Why do they call you Littlefinger?" she blurted out. Percy snorted but said nothing, while Baelish look startled for a minute before composing himself.
"Arya don't be rude!" Morgana scolded her.
"Its quite alright," Baelish said, "when I was a child I was very small and I come from a spit of land called The Fingers, so you see its an exceedingly clever nickname," he finished.
"Been sitting here for days start the damn joust before I piss myself," the king bellowed, met with exasperation by the queen. She rolled her eyes before leaving the booth while the Hound moved out of her way.
Cheers erupted as a huge man on horseback approached the stand. He had black armor on, and a huge sword strapped to his side. He opened his face plate and nodded to the king.
"Who's that?" Sansa asked, looking at the man in fear.
"Ah, Ser Gregor Clegane. They call him The Mountain," Littlefinger told the story in an ominous voice. "The Hound's older brother," he added after a moment.
"And his opponent?" Sansa looked towards the new rider, covered in a shiny silver armor.
"Ser Hugh of the Vale. He was Jon's squire. Look how far he's come," Baelish told her. He had a certain tone in his voice like he knew something everybody else didn't. Percy narrowed his eyes at the mention of the arrogant ass he met earlier but held his tongue.
"Yes yes enough of the bloody pomp, get on with it!" the king waved them along. The two cantered to each side of the field and got their gear, i.e. shield and lance. As soon as they had their gear they set off, kicking, and urging their horses on. They took off on a direct path to impale the other.
Percy could see Hugh's lance bouncing up and down with the horse's movements as the tip rose to a level it wouldn't even hit the Mountain. They clashed in the middle, Hugh's lance not even hitting the hulking man's shield, while his own shield cracked under the hit of the Mountain.
Their horses slowed to a canter as they approached the other side then turned abruptly to take off back towards each other. This time Ser Hugh's lance was aligned perfectly, and Percy thought he might stand a chance of at least hitting the target. The clash erupted in wood this time as the audience stood and shouted in horror.
Ser Hugh fell backwards off his horse, and Percy rushed to his side when he noticed nobody else was. The horse took off, frightened by the commotion and Percy didn't bother to stop it. He looked over Ser Hugh and saw the piece of wood sticking out of his neck as the man gurgled blood. Percy yanked it out, not caring about the precautions and pressed his hands to the wound.
Even as he applied pressure to the wound he knew it was too late as Ser Hugh coughed up blood and stilled. The crowd was still silent, and Percy realized they couldn't see what happened as Percy covered most of their views. He stood up slowly, turning and shaking his head at the king. The king's earlier smile at the joust was long gone as he realized what had happened.
The Mountain on the far side of the arena just turned his horse around, not caring about the casualty. Two men rushed onto the field and carried Ser Hugh's body away at the wave of the king. Percy saw the crowd watching them drag him through the dirt. Sansa, Arya, and Morgana were horrified, while Baelish had a look of grim satisfaction.
The rest of the crowd turned to look towards each other, and then the king. Percy could see Baelish whispering something to Sansa as she looked on stone-faced. The king, clearly perturbed, waved on. "Accidents happen in tournaments. We will take a short break to deal with this untimely death, and a proper funeral with be held tonight," he announced.
Percy hurried to the group, and ushered Arya, Sansa, and Morgana away form the crowd. "Let's get back to Lord Stark," he said lightly, and they went back.
It took the group over an hour to get back, as the whole city was a panicked mess. Even though deaths happened regularly, one so public and pronounced was a bigger deal. Crowds huddled around different places, and Percy decided to let Sansa wear his hoodie with the hood up, and he covered Arya with his body. He wasn't necessarily too worried, but he didn't want to take any risks. His hand thumbed Riptide the whole way back.
When the were back, they knocked on the doors to Stark's family chambers, and he welcomed them happily. He hugged the two girls, "That was shorter than I expected," he remarked "How was it? Did you girls have fun?" Percy shook his head over the girls' shoulders, and Ned just now read the somber mood. "What happened? Are you all alright?" he started asking.
This spurred Arya into a spree of talking, as the words poured out of her mouth. "Father it was terrible, absolutely terrible! It was just the first joust, and this huge man named The Mountain was against such a little man!" she told the story as Ned listened and Sansa just rocked on her heels gently.
When she finished the story, Ned looked to Percy who nodded. "Perseus, you may go to your quarters, I'm sure you have things to do," Percy didn't miss the hidden message and nodded again.
"I'll see you in a bit, Lord Stark," Percy said and left the chambers. He hurried to his own room, and, expecting the worst as usual, creaked open the door. The first thing that struck him was the smell. It was of smoke and burnt wood.
Then he realized something was missing, his bed. The wooden frame was nothing but charcoal, and he could see the remains of the cloth for the bedding. When he looked at the dragon, he saw feathers sticking out of his scales, making it look more like a chicken than a dragon.
Percy groaned. Thank the gods the rest of his room was made from stone. Besides the furniture, of course, but it appeared everything else was too far away to catch fire.
Percy groaned. He knew it was because he forgot to give them food before he left. "I hate you guys," he sighed.
Summoning steak at once, he closed the door behind him. "What am I gonna do about my bed, huh?" he asked knowing he would receive no response. The dragon looked at him and cocked its head, but otherwise he got nothing. "You guys suck, you know that?" he scolded them again. All in all, he knew it was his own fault, but it was still really annoying.
A knock at his door startled him and his animals. The drakon let out a low growl, emitting from the back of its throat while the dragon was bearing its fangs. At least they had good survival instincts.
"Who is it?" Percy called, hoping it was Ned.
"Its me, Lord Stark," the familiar voice called. Percy sighed in relief when he recognized the man's voice and opened the door. He ushered Ned in quickly before shutting the door again. "Seven hells, is that them?" Ned exclaimed when he saw the beasts.
"Yeah. They've grown already. A lot," Percy told him. The animals were now at least double their size, with the drakon about the length of his arm and the dragon just bigger in all aspects.
Ned raised his eyebrow "And your bed?" Percy rubbed the back of his neck, a bad habit he got growing up.
"Yeahhhh I'm going to need a new one. Forgot to feed them earlier," Percy winced.
Ned sighed. "Not sure what I will tell the maids. Perhaps that you broke it in your sleep," they chuckled. "Anyways, I've got your map if you want to look at it," Ned said procuring a rolled up parchment. "I've briefly looked over it, but not too in depth."
He unrolled the paper on the desk. It had drawn up lines on the yellow paper, indicating tens of hundreds of passages leading to various places under the Keep. There were some places where it opened up into caverns, some small, some large.
"Wow," Percy muttered more to himself, looking over the passages and elaborate maze beneath the Keep.
"There are many large caverns I saw, but I think you should consider this one here," Ned pointed to a spot on the map. Percy trailed his finger there, and saw it was quite perfect.
It was far away from the entrance, so nobody down there would bother wandering that far. Best of all, it had an open wall that overlooked the ocean outside and dropped onto a cliff face. That way when the dragons grew bigger, they would be able to freely leave without struggling to get them through narrow passages.
"Its perfect. I may keep them in here for one more week until they really grow too big, but if they grow faster than I thought I'll move them," Percy told Ned.
The man nodded, "I'll leave the map here for you. Come to me when you decide to move them so I can make sure nobody is wandering the halls and sees them."
Percy smirked, "You honor me with your generosity, Lord Stark." Ned only sighed and walked to the door.
"Before I leave, Perseus," Percy groaned, "I wanted to get the story from you about what happened at the joust today," Ned looked at him expectantly.
Percy wasn't sure what to say. In all honesty it looked like a simple jousting accident, but at the same time the coincidence of who died and after he was investigating told otherwise. "I'm not quite sure. It seemed to look like a simple jousting accident, but the timing is anything but simple."
Ned nodded along. "Arya said it was the Mountain against Ser Hugh, is that correct?" Percy nodded. "Well if you didn't know, the Mountain only does what one person tells him to do," Percy raised an eyebrow in response.
"Who?"
"Cersei Lannister," Ned let that sink in for a bit. Percy knew that woman was evil.
"So what could've happened, if it wasn't an accident, is that Ser Hugh was paid to do something for Cersei Lannister, and when it was done she didn't like the attention he was getting and decided to remove him, and therefore the liability," Percy summarized, more to think on it than anything else.
"Yes. And, well, as you know, Ser Hugh was the previous hand's squire. Coincidently after his untimely death, he found himself purchasing brand new armor despite only recently being knighted, also for reasons unknown," Ned added.
"But the question would be, why would Cersei want Jon Arryn gone?" Percy asked, receiving no response. "If she wanted to replace him with her brother she would've done so. Instead she let the king take her on a month long journey to get you," Percy sighed. He usually left this thinking to Annabeth.
"So Jon Arryn knew something he shouldn't have," Ned continued. "Something to do with Cersei Lannister," the two just sat, thinking about what they knew.
"What were Jon Arryn's last words?" Percy asked.
"The seed is strong. He muttered it repeatedly before he died," Ned told him.
"The seed is strong," Percy muttered to himself, thinking about what they could be. The seed could be the literal seed of a tree or some plant, but that wouldn't make any sense. What other meaning for seed was there? Percy racked his brain thinking, but nothing came to mind.
"Damnit!" Percy shouted in frustration, running his hand through his hair.
Ned frowned at him, "Calm yourself. We will figure it out. We have time before anything happens, but what we need to do right now is but Cersei off the scent that we're investigating. We can't let her know, lest we become like Jon," Ned said. Percy agreed, but not happily.
"Will you be coming to the tournament tomorrow?" Percy asked.
"I hope to make it. Today that damned Janus Slynt had me so occupied doing his own job for him," Ned sighed rubbing his chin.
"Well I hope you make it tomorrow. The girls would be thrilled. Littlefinger talked to them today," Percy said with a roll of the eyes.
Ned narrowed his eyes. "What did Littlefinger want?" he asked shortly.
"Just told the girls about himself. He was talking to them during and after the accident, but I wasn't close enough to hear. I wouldn't worry too much about Littlefinger, his only threat is his silver tongue," Percy told Ned.
"That silver tongue can be more powerful than you think," Ned muttered as he turned towards the door again. "Well, I must be going Perseus. Again, please let me know when you intent to move the dragons so I can clear the Keep. And stay off the Arryn case for a bit. I'll continue getting what information I can, but we'll pause for a bit," Percy nodded.
"Wait, before you leave," Percy started, and Ned dropped his hand from the handle. "I was wondering if I could take the guard and train them. I'm from a place quite far from here, but we have a more organized style of fighting in a war, and I think they can benefit from it."
Ned raised his eyebrows. "We are not at war," Percy shrugged, "but I do believe they could benefit from the training. Tell Jory when and where and I'm sure he'll get them there."
Percy nodded, "Thank you."
Ned smiled and left the room.
(*)(*)(*)
After making sure the two beasts were content in his cabin and wouldn't burn anything to a crisp, he left to the city with a destination in mind. He approached the blacksmith, eyeing the people around him. Ever since the experience at the doll-makers, he was always wary and gave out money less.
He was dressed in more casual clothes to avoid drawing attention to himself and walked in. The heat blasted him immediately, and his nose was filled with the smell of cabin 9. An older man drenched in sweat walked over from his place by one of the forges.
"What can I do for you?" he asked politely.
Percy smiled back. "I need some things made. More specifically, I need a lot of things made and very quickly."
The man sat at a table in front of him, procuring a parchment and quill. "What are they and how many?" he asked.
Percy withdrew a parchment from his pocket and unraveled it on the desk. It had been a bitch to draw a classic roman infantry shield from scratch, with a quill no less, but he managed. "I need 50 of these."
The man looked at him with doubt and surprise. "50? How do you plan on paying for these?" the man asked, incredulous. Percy let the sack over his shoulder drop to the ground and the sound of gold coins put the man on alert.
Counting the amount of coins from his infinite pouch had been way worse than the drawing part, but he was sure 500 Gold Dragons would be enough for both of his projects.
"How much is in there?"
"Enough" Percy replied flatly. He leaned back over the parchment and drew the man's attention to it. "It's a shield. I want a metal border, and a metal inlay. I want wood as the main piece outside the metal. Strong but not too heavy." The man nodded along and made notes on his own parchment. If he was surprised by the request he didn't show it.
Percy pulled another parchment from his pocket and unraveled it next to the other one. It revealed a spear, classic through and through with a metal tip and wood shaft. "I also need 50 of these," the man added that to his parchment. "How soon do you think you can get these done?" Percy asked.
The man looked over the numbers, and stood up and started looking through the shop, most likely for materials. "I'd say at least 2 weeks to get the materials and build them. The metal alone will cost me at least 200 gold dragons, if not more. I only work here with my apprentice, Gendry," the man gestured to a boy in the back hammering away at a chunk of metal, "so the work load will be a lot." Percy nodded in understanding.
"May I aske what the purpose of this many swords and shields are?" the man requested with a raised eyebrow.
Percy only smirked in response, "Re outfitting."
Cool. Anyway, remember to please pm me if you want to be a beta reader for me, and as always I'll respond to reviews.
namer1
-Thanks for the review. A lot of people are asking about the whole real changes thing, so I guess I'll answer it here. As of right now Percy is almost brand new to Westeros and doesn't really understand much about it. Because of that he isn't going to change too much in the beginning given the situation. Don't worry, I will have him make real changes as time goes on, but for the first couple chapters he will only do small things.
ryker55mc
-Thanks for review :)
qwertypous
-See reply to namer1. Thanks for the review and input
TheFire44
Yeah I'm working on my formatting a bit, but I'm also trying to get a beta reader, wink wink. Thanks for the advice!
Guest
-Lol thanks a lot!
VictoriaCP2
-No secrets will be revealed here. Pairing is still being considered.
kingmanaena
See reply to naming1, thanks for review :)
Guest
-Hehe perhaps
Misfiredmayhem
-Thanks for the kind words, my only goal is to make you all happy!
Guest
-Interesting…?
Anyway those are your replies, please read the review to naming1 specifically for some basic information. The follows and favorites on this story are crazy, I never thought I would get this many. You all are awesome. Please review so I can reply and get input. And again, BETA READER WANTED.
Word count: 8933