"Ah, there you are, I was beginning to think you had followed through on your threat to return to the Rock." Tywin gave his son a slight smile as he entered the sitting room of his son's rooms in the Red Keep.
It had been four years since Tywin had helped quash the rebellion. He had taken a small contingent of his army to the trident where he then proceeded to act as an advisor and battle commander for the then Crown Prince. The rest of the army had ridden toward Kings Landing with orders to infiltrate the capital and remove the king from the throne. He also tasked 20 soldiers with making following the Mountain and Lorch, and to make sure the Princess and her children were safe, by any means necessary. It cost him twelve if said men, but the two were stopped before they even made it to the royal chambers.
It was him that set up the parlay between Robert, Eddard, and Jon Arryn with Rhaegar, Ser Barristen, and himself. It was there that he was able to get through to the new Warden Of the North the unlikelihood of his sister being kidnapped. This made the man more open to speaking with Rhaegar, and allowed the prince to explain the truth behind Lyanna's "kidnapping". He had explained that letters had been sent to both of their fathers as well as Robert, explaining that the two had eloped together.
Unable to support the idea of fighting what could very possibly be his own good brother, Lord Stark told Rhaegar he would claim neutrality if Robert refused to see reason. However, he would bring the night of the North down on Rhaegar's head should he find himself lied to. Of course the Baratheon lord could not be reasoned with, and he and the prince fought in single combat, against Tywin's urgings. At least the prince acknowledged his concerns, and paid much closer attention to the fight, aware of every single one of his opponents swing of his war hammer. This time Rhaegar was victorious, and Robert was sent to the wall in an act of mercy from the prince, rather than being beheaded for treason.
Just like that the rebellion was over and most of the armies went home with significantly less bloodshed than the first time. Lord Stark turned toward the capital with a small contingent. He would help remove Aerys from the throne, then go retrieve his sister from Dorne and bring her back to her husband in the capital.
"Yes well, I tried to leave, but I was captured by a couple of imps." He glanced down at the table, and the childish giggles spoke volumes.
"I see, it would appear we have lost a prince and princess recently. You haven't by chance seen them have you?" The giggling was back full force.
"I can't say that I have seen them." Tyrion said with a grin as his father crossed the room, and knelt down next to the table. Snatching up the end of the table cloth, he lifted it quickly to find the missing children.
"So I see," He spoke with a fake unamused look. The two children under the table held a special place in his and Tyrion's heart.
He had already been named Hand when Lord Stark retuned with the infant prince, and saw first hand Rhaegar's grief at losing Lyanna. However the man's disappointment at having another son had shocked him. The babe was handed over to a wet nurse, and would rarely be seen by his father after that, much as it would anger his mother's family.
The poor little prince wasn't the only child neglected by the king. When his brother and sister were brought back to the capital the man had been devastated to learn that his mother had died. He could barely stand to look at the small girl who he thought took her from him, and much like her nephew, the princess was handed off to a wet nurse to be kept out of sight.
The prince Viserys was given leave to do as he pleased, his brother not caring to monitor his behavior. The child was a vicious, spoiled brat, who had quickly learned that as long as he didn't pick on either of the current queens' children, he could get away with almost anything. Sadly, this left Jon and Dany as his prime targets, but thankfully the two learned quick how to avoid him.
When Rhaegar proclaimed he needed another wife, Tywin thought he had lost his mind. Cersei and Tyrion had already been brought to the capital to live with their father in his quarters there, and she was chosen to be said wife as the most convenient option.
Tywin tried to talk her out of accepting, having seen what she became when she was queen, but the girl was blinded by the chance for power. The two married, and less than a year later the new King got his Visenya, followed by a Joffrey a year and a half later.
The only children the man seemed to take any interest in where Aegon, Rhaenys, and Visenya, spending any free time he had after ruling teaching/playing with them. This is why Joffrey didn't have a Targaryen name. Cersei had waited for Rhaegar to name him, but when he delayed she had enough and named the child herself. He didn't seem bothered by it, and the name stuck.
This lead to fighting between the two queens, each believing they held more power over a king who cared less about them than he should have. Each too busy caring for their children and trying to undermine the other to notice the small motherless children left behind.
The man constantly spoke of a prophecy of some sort, and how they would defeat some great evil. Tywin knew that the one the prophecy spoke of, the Song of Ice and Fire, had already been born, but he couldn't get Rhaegar to see sense.
As such, he took it on himself to care for the child he saw to be the key to defeating the great evil. At first it had been about preparing the child for what was to come, but it wasn't long before he found himself loving him as if he were his own, and wanting to protect him from everything that was coming. It was the same for Daenerys.
Stooping down, he snatched up the edge of the table cloth, and was rewarded with peals of laughter from the two children hiding there. "And what are you two up to?"
"Hiding..." Dany said with a grin as Jon nodded eagerly nodded his head in agreement. His real name was Jaehaerys, but Dany hadn't been able to pronounce it, and had called him Jon. Tywin was more than happy to make sure that nickname stuck.
"I see, and who are you hiding from?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"The new baby, he cries too much." Jon wrinkled his nose, as Dany eagerly nodded her head. Jon was the shyer of the two, really only coming out of his shell when Dany, Tywin, and Tyrion were around.
"I see, you do understand that babies do cry." He pulled Dany out, standing up with her on his hip while Jon crawled out on his own.
"But he cries all the time." Dany complained.
They weren't wrong, Joffrey was a very needy baby, even at one year old, and his daughter was more than happy to see to his needs. There was just something about how she treated the baby that had him wondering if he hadn't stopped the relationship between his two oldest children like he had thought. Unfortunately, with Joffrey just a newborn, there was no way of knowing for sure. They would have to wait till he grew a little to see who he looked like.
"Well, it is currently time for the head imp's lessons, you two can either run along and play, or sit in on them." He had to hold back a smile when he thought of how the two had gotten the nickname "the imps". They had over heard some guards teasing Tyrion, calling him an imp. However, they hadn't realized it was meant as an insult, all they knew was it was a funny word that was used to describe one of their favorite people, so asked if they could be imps too. He had happened along, and had told them they could most definitely be imps. It had gone a long way to taking away the sting of the word when his son and heir heard it applied to him.
As he expected the two children climbed up to the table to sit in on the lessons. It actually helped Tyrion grasp the concepts being taught, as Tywin would present it, then it was up to Tyrion to explain it in a way the children would understand. It made the learning process take longer, but he wouldn't trade time with all three children for the world.
