Wife of the Wolf, Husband of the Sun.
Book 2
Chapter One-Hundred and Sixteen
He was walking into a lioness's den, but he was a lion too.
Still, he was only a little lion and he doubted that it was going to be an encounter where he would be able to gain control, Tyrion might have been from the main branch of the Lannister family but he was hardly well respected even though he was, by law, the heir to Casterly Rock now that Jaime was a man of the Queensguard who, like their older brothers who served to protect the King, also swore off lands and titles.
But the law and Tywin Lannister disagreed on that point and when it came to a clash between the power of the law and the will of Tywin Lannister, well, Tyrion was fairly sure which one he knew would win out.
But he was still a Lannister and so he would do what he had to do for the glory of his house, so he urged his horse further down the road towards Lannisport. The sun was setting now, it turned the Sunset Sea a muddy red and cast long shadows across the city.
There was a chill in the air and Tyrion frowned as he pulled his wool cloak closer around himself, he did not love the fact that his cousin had set their meeting for so close to nightfall but she had refused to change the time when he had asked her to, he would come when she wanted him to or she would not see him at all.
Tyrion had to see this done, but he did not like it.
Lannisport was a Lannister city, he should have felt as safe here as he did while walking through the passageways of the Rock but he did not. The city had never truly recovered from when the Ironborn had sacked it, there was a hardness in the people's eyes as he urged his horse through the streets towards the great square stone keep in the middle of the city where the Lannisters of Lannisport dwelled.
Well, one Lannister at any rate. Almost all of the Lannisters of Lannisport had died when the Ironborn attacked the city, hanged from the walls of the city and the one that had survived...well, he should not wish death on a cousin but he was certain that Lady Lelianna would thank him for it rather than be offended by it.
She was half a corpse herself, after all, it was often said in both the halls of Casterly Rock and the streets of Lannisport that Lady Lilianna died when her family did, and her pain had only increased when her display of grief had offended the Mad King so much that he had her tongue cut out. It had left its wounds deep on her and being forced to assume the rule in Lannisport had not helped her in that regard.
This was a city that thirsted for vengeance, for blood and nothing else would sate them and its lady fed their rage and their rage fed her as well, a wheel that turned without any end in sight.
Tyrion was helped down from his saddle in the keep's courtyard by a lanky stable boy, Tyrion did not think he had ever seen a stable boy wear live steel on their hip anywhere else other than his cousin's seat, many things were different at his cousin's seat.
A page offered to escort him to the hall where Lady Lilianna would be waiting for him and he agreed to it, the walls were lined with suits of gilded crimson armor and each held a solid gold spear and Tyrion assumed that they were there to make guests feel uncomfortable.
At the end of the great hall where Tyrion was brought, sat in a high chair carved out of golden wood, was Lady Lilianna Lannister, the lady of Lannisport and the last of the Lannisport Lannisters.
She was dressed in a gown of black velvet, she only ever wore black and the hair net that bound her golden curls back was studded with black diamonds. She was lovely, pale as milk with the straight golden hair that flowed over her shoulders and down her back with lips as red as blood.
But her eyes were hard, Tyrion's father's eyes were similar but there was a hatred in them that burned just under the surface that his fathers did not have. Lord Tywin was a glacier, Lady Lilianna was a headsman's axe.
The Lady of Lannisport had no tongue of her own with which to speak and so she relied on her others to do her speaking for her, and standing at her side was her favorite speaker Lancel Lannister, the youngest child of late his uncle Kevan, who Lilianna had taken in as her own after his own mother had proven incapable, or unwilling, to take care of her children on her own and had taken holy vows to become a septa.
"Cousin," he addressed Lilianna first before offering the same greeting to Lancel. "It is always good to see you both and always wonderful to feel the warm welcome that I can only hope to receive in Lannisport."
Lady Lilianna's response was to reach for a table at the right of her chair to pick up a scrap of parchment, writing something short on it before she beckoned Lancel to come and take it from her, which he did and then read it before speaking her words. "My lady wishes to know what is it you want cousin?"
Tyrion frowned, it wasn't as if they had any other way to communicate but he couldn't deny that it was frustrating. "Could it not just be that I wish to see my sweet cousin, her conversation is so thrilling after all."
Lilianna narrowed her eyes at him but Lancel looked fit to charge, it had been a while since Tyrion had seen his brother but aside from his hair being a bit more sandy than Jaime's spun gold Lancel could have been mistaken for a younger him at a distance, and it was partly the way that he carried himself.
He had heard that ever since Lilianna had taken charge of their cousin that she had her master-at-arms put him through hard training since he was old enough to hold a sword and it had clearly paid off, the young man was firmly muscled and tall and Tyrion was certain that many a maid had dreamed sweet dreams of him, and many a young man as well.
But the way he seemed ready to pounce on Tyrion for insulting his lady, that was Jaime all over.
"You would do well to hold your insolent tongue Imp," Lancel spoke as his hand curled around the hilt of his blade, Tyrion did not think that the boy would strike him down here in his lady cousin's hall but he wasn't about to test that theory with his own head.
"Peace cousin, I would never wish to insult your lady," Tyrion spoke with his favorite grin, a thing that had always made men laugh when they realized that he meant no harm. He was the Imp, the half-man, insolent and full of low cunning but harmless in the end.
Lancel did not stop glaring at him but Tyrion watched as the fingers around the hilt of the blade slowly started to loosen their grip, Tyrion decided to press the moment. "There has been a raven from King's Landing, from the Master of Ships."
He had known that Lilianna would not take that well, but even the mention of the Lord of Pyke caused her eyes to darken, her hands to clench into fists and a strangled, hissing noise to leave her tongueless mouth.
She has not forgotten, she has not forgiven. She never will.
"The Master of Ships is concerned with the number of ships that Lannisport is building," Even now there were men in the deep thick woods a few miles away from the city, cutting trees down so fast that any man could be forgiven for thinking that they were at war and his cousin was trying to deny an army wood to build siege towers, if she kept at this rate there wouldn't be any trees left.
"You have had sixteen ships built this year alone," large and fierce-looking things that could match any royal warship, with sails of crimson. "The royal fleet has only added four ships to its numbers, Lord Quellon is concerned and wishes to know why you are constructing so many ships so fast."
Lilianna stared at him for a long few moments but then she slowly reached out for another piece of parchment and began to write on it, it took her a while to finish what she was writing and the hall was filled with the sound of her quill scratching against the paper.
She held up the paper and Lancel hurried to fetch it more eagerly than a dog running to catch a juicy bone. "What concerns that monster has are no concern of mine, his men climbed over the walls of my city and put my people to the sword, burnt their homes, and carried away their belongings. The women of this city were raped near a hundred times and my family, my father, and my mother, and all my sisters were hanged from the walls of this very keep."
"And that Dornish bitch who calls herself a queen gave them full sanction to do so, that northern savage sits on his throne by stepping over the bodies of my family." It was Lancel speaking but Tyrion's eyes were firm on Lilianna.
"Cousin," Tyrion began, his words gentle and measured as he knew that one wrong step here would see him thrown out on his rear, at best. "No one has forgotten the horror that was done here but it was a war, if it had to happen mine own father would have done a thousand things worse to secure victory. But we are not at war any longer and building so many ships in a single year, there is only one message that could be glimpsed from that. If we are not careful it could lead to another war."
There was naught but silence in the hall and then a high clacking sound burst out of his cousin's mouth and it took Tyrion a moment to understand that she was laughing at him.
Lancel looked at her like it was the most beautiful sound that he had ever heard in his young life and when the laughter finally died he hurried to take the next, and final Tyrion had no doubt, piece of parchment from her.
"We are at war, get out." And that was that Lilianna rose from her seat and stalked out of the hall and Lancel escorted him out of the hall back out to the courtyard.
As his horse was being led out of the stables Tyrion turned to tilt his head up towards his younger cousin. "She's quite mad, you know that?"
"Speak one more word against my lady Imp and I swear that I shall-"
"Cut my down, I'm certain," Tyrion hummed but stepped towards his horse when it was brought out and allowed the stable boy to help him up onto his saddle. "But she will get you killed, and all of us killed if it comes to war with the Iron Throne."
"She wants justice for her family," Lancel said with a heavy frown which looked odd on such a young face, his green eyes were hard. "And I mean to see that she gets it, I will give her a bag of Greyjoy heads and the head of Elia Martell as well."
He speaks treason so openly, so casually, and he does not fear who hears it.
To be sure he was probably in the safest place that he could speak those words, there was no love for either Ironborn or Dornishmen here but even so, the sheer confidence with which he spoke those words was...troubling, the boy had been raised here and he had been reading Lilianna's words since he was old enough to read. He saw the world as she did.
Tyrion sighed and shook his head. "Good evening to you cousin." And with that, he urged his horse on.
It was full dark when he finally returned to the Rock and his legs were aching when he climbed down from the saddle, he wished for nothing more than to retire in his chambers to have a good long soak and a glass of wine before retiring to bed but it seemed that his tribulations were not done yet as now one of his father's pages stepped up to him. "My lord, your Lord Father wishes for you to sup with him."
"Of course he does," Tyrion muttered and then sighed. "Just allow me to get changed and to wash away the scent of horse."
The bath was not as long as he would have liked and because he could not keep his father waiting it had to be a cold one, which did naught to improve his mood but he was soon dressed and on his way to supper regardless.
Lord Tywin was sat at the head of the table, resplendent in gold and crimson with a goblet of wine in one hand and Tyrion took the seat opposite him. "Lord father."
"Tyrion," His father answered before he nodded to a serving-man who hurried to bring them their supper, it was hardly the finest meal that Tyrion had ever had within the Rock but it would serve. A ham joint studded with cloves and glazed with honey was presented to them, served with a red wine sauce and some bread and cheese as well. "How fares your cousin?"
"She can't talk and hates everyone, so the same as last year." Tyrion filled his cup with wine and took a deep drink from it. "She's not going to stop building ships father."
"Good," Lord Tywin said with a shrug that made Tyrion frown. Of course, he did not wish for him to convince Lilianna to stop building ships, if he wanted that then he would have gone himself.
"It could lead to war," Tyrion would do his duty to his house if it came to that of course but he would rather it not come to that. "If you don't stop her then the Iron Throne could see us as being in open defiance of them."
"Let them," Lord Tywin said as he cut himself another slice of him, his knife bloody and stained with grease. "They have enough problems, if they march on the West then they will all be poorer for it in the end."
Tyrion frowned. "Even we can't stand again the rest of the realm alone."
Lord Tywin threatened to smile then and it made Tyrion want to run and hide. "Who said we would be alone?"
End of Chapter One-Hundred and Sixteen.
Another chapter is done and dusted and I forgot how much fun I had when writing Tyrion.
Next chapter we have another new P.O.V, but it is a canon character.
Anywho till next time,
DiscordantSymphony