|| Before we begin, I would like to apologize for a mistake I made in the earlier chapter. I had mistakenly thought the Durrandons to be Andals when they were actually of the First Men. I'll incorporate my mistake in a way to fix things without having to rewrite anything. Thank you to all who pointed that out to me ^_^
"Do we have to do this now Jon?"
"We do, your Grace. This is a matter of the realm."
"Fuck the realm for focusing on this over rebuilding shit!"
"A wedding is always a celebrated event your Grace. The rich get to show off and the poor get to have decent food if worked right. This could help the realm, your Grace, fill in the little voids that are there."
Robert looked helplessly at his small council, from his hand Jon Arryn to his master of whispers Lord Varys, to Barristan Selmy the lord commander of the Kingsguard, and then to Paxter Redwyne his master of ships before his eyes stopped to his younger brother and master of laws Stannis Baratheon.
The final two were the latest addition to his small council, the former of the two being the most controversial addition. Not long ago Paxter Redwyne and his liege lord Mace Tyrell were at the siege of Storm's End and that too as enemies of King Robert. But they had eventually bent the knee when Aerys was defeated and Ned Stark had come to break the siege. Robert found it in him to give the man a chance, especially since Paxter had experience with ships and going to battle as a naval admiral. Robert felt it was a good appointment.
Stannis' appointment was less controversial. The man had a strict sense of justice and did not much sway from it. Even those that helped him would be punished with no mercy if they committed any crime or anything illegal. Ser Davos Seaworth was one such example. The man might have smuggled food in for Storm's End during the siege, but his fingers were chopped for smuggling. Robert could trust Stannis to uphold the King's laws. And Stannis seemed to like the appointment as well. It was either that or him being named Lord of Storm's End that made him happy.
"Very well" a defeated sigh fell from Robert's lips. "How many proposals do we have at hand?"
"We have one from Tywin Lannister, offering the hand of his daughter in marriage" Jon began and Robert could already feel the bile rising at the thought of Cersei Lannister as Queen. "We have Lord Mace Tyrell offering the hand of his sister Janna Tyrell. And finally, we have Lord Leyton Hightower offering two daughters for your Grace to choose from, Malora Hightower and Lynesse Hightower."
"And what do we know of these women so far? Any of you might want to shed some light on the matter?" Robert looked to his men who all remained silent. "None? Lord Paxter you should know somethings about the ladies from the Reach."
"Your Grace, I have not met these ladies in my time at The Arbor I am loathed to say. But I believe they should be lovely women if their fathers are anything to go by."
"I see" Robert frowned. "Lord Varys? You seem like a man that should know more than any of us here, being who you are."
"Might be I know a bit more than the other respectable Lords and Sers present here, your Grace" Varys gave a bow from where he sat. "Lady Janna has the typical looks of a Tyrell woman, if not a bit more developed physically. She is a gossip and likes to keep herself involved in knowing the gossips rather than being part of it."
"Lady Malora Hightower is considered a recluse your Grace. She hardly leaves her home and always sticks to her books. Her father terms her as a scholar and I'd agree to it. Though she tends to dabble into the lost magics of Westeros and those of other regions around it as well. All for academic reasoning of course. She's termed as the mad maid."
"Lady Lynesse, Lord Leyton's other daughter is more social than her elder sister, and prettier as well. The people of Old Town refer to her as beautiful Lynesse for her golden hair and cream skin. Some would say she has Targaryen traits in her. She is also very materialistic and likes to spend extravagantly. Her father has spoiled her as such."
"Cersei Lannister is the only daughter of Tywin Lannister and twin sister to Ser Jaime Lannister. She is a strikingly beautiful woman with golden hair and emerald eyes. She holds herself with the grace of a lady and is very comfortable in court. She is described to be cunning and ambitious. Yet her cunning isn't as grand as she thinks of it. She has a habit of biting off more than she can chew. And there have been…unsavory rumors about her."
"We will not dwell into rumors Lord Varys" Robert stopped the eunuch before he could spill the secrets that he already knew. Cersei and Jaime, the couple that shared a womb and now share a lot more. Robert drank water from his chalice and sighed. The wine was something he did not drink ever since coming to this world. It was never his thing in his world, something that followed him here.
"So we have a gossip, a mad maid, a heavy spender, and a fool who thinks herself the cleverest?" Robert asked with another defeated sigh. "I'll be honest Jon, I like none of these prospects."
"But you must choose your Grace" Jon Arryn insisted.
"Right, since I have to marry. Why not I marry Mya's mother back from the Vale? I'm sure she'd love to be Queen."
"It's not easy your Grace" Stannis cleared his throat. "You are now the King of The Seven Kingdoms. You descend from the first men as well as the andals. Your status and hers do not match for you to marry her. And the Lords will take offense at their daughters being overlooked for some commoner. You simply must choose from these ladies."
Robert did not hear the entirety of Stannis' speech, freezing up hearing a specific part of it. "The first men?"
"The Baratheon line descends from the Durrandons, the Storm Kings from when the seven kingdoms were each a different kingdom. And the Storm Kings were rulers who fought against the Andals" Stannis explained, a vein popping up in his jaws. It was obvious he found it an insult Robert forgot the history of his own house.
The old Robert may have known, but the new one did not. "That fucking raven lied," the man thought. He breathed out slowly before giving his brother an apologetic smile.
"I apologize Stannis. It simply slipped my mind" Robert spoke to his brother who nodded at him, the vein now evened out. "Since I can't choose out of these women, let's look at them from another angle. Which house will bring us the most benefit?"
"Your Grace, all these ladies come from very prominent and wealthy families. But I would think House Hightower would stand ahead of the rest" Jon Arryn spoke.
"I agree your grace" Paxter Redwyne nodded his agreement. "House Hightower have equal if not a bit more wealth compared to House Tyrell and Lannister. And if required, they can deploy three times the number of men the Lannister or the Tyrell's can."
"But whether they would want to take part in any wars is another question entirely" Ser Barristan spoke. "Being devout followers of The Seven, they prefer to not battle."
"But they will battle if they are called upon. As was their vow and they are not ones to break their vows" Jon Arryn defended and Ser Barristan nodded his head.
"Alright, enough of this" Robert interrupted the talks with a slam of his fist on the arm of his chair. "I am hungry, as might be the case for the rest of you. You will all have lunch with me and my brothers, and then we will reconvene this meeting after."
The council stood after the King did. They murmured agreements before all of them walked out of the room.
"How are you settling in the capital Lord Paxter? And how are your family adjusting?" asked the King.
"They are doing quite well your Grace" Paxter answered with a small smile on his face. "The boys are excited to be here. Mostly to see the dragon skulls."
"Then I'll make arrangements to take them to the skulls soon" Robert chuckled. "Twins right?" he asked and Paxter nodded once more. "And you have a young girl as well I heard."
"She's only a year old your Grace. Everything amazes her."
"As if often the case with children" Robert gave a small smile. The talks about children had reminded him of Mya Stone. She was conceived way before he was Robert Baratheon. Yet he felt a bubbling sense of fatherly love for her. It was weird.
"If I do not offend your Grace, you have a child too no? A baseborn daughter" Paxter inquired.
"No offense taken Lord Paxter. Mya is her name. She's currently in the Vale, being taken care of by House Arryn. I have Jon to thank for that" he smiled at the man in question. "I would have naturalized her and brought her to court,"
"But it would create unnecessary troubles for her and to you?" the master of ships finished for him and Robert just nodded.
"She's in good hands. The knowledge comforts me most" Robert smiled.
"Your Grace" a young man ran up to the King and his council and stopped right in front of him. "There's a man that wishes to see you."
"I think he's seen me if he's been in the capital for a while" Robert raised an eyebrow. "Show him to someplace to rest himself and have lunch. I shall meet him after I have my own."
"Of course your Grace" the man bowed before scurrying off.
"Do you know who it is?" Stannis asked.
"I have no idea" Robert shrugged before the party continued their walk to the feasting hall, Robert thinking about who it could be.