Ashara stared at the crib. She stared but not saw nothing. Nothing that hinted at life. Her stillborn, her unlamented bastard she thought with scorn. But not at the child but at the world for cursing her birth and Ned for marrying that Trout when they exchanged words and cloaks in front of a heart tree at Harrenhal. She'd gone from being the proud and blushing wife of a second son to the grieving lady of Winterfell to the forgotten mistress in a short few weeks.
Honor, she thought Ned had it. But now the world thought she'd lost hers for losing her maidenhead to her rightful husband.
It wasn't fair. Things weren't supposed to be like this. Elia should be coddling her third child by now and she should be at court still, since Ned wouldn't need to be in the North to rule the wasteland. Elia would have gladly given them a holdfast near King's landing. They'd be equally removed from family but both could visit by ship whenever they wanted.
She could have accepted living in the North and Winterfell had been a unpleasant but welcome surprise. What she couldn't accept was that Ned had abandoned her and their child. Only a single letter of apology before setting her aside.
She desperately wanted to fix things somehow. To prove that she was better than that Tully bitch. But she had no army to give. And what did it say about their union when swords were more important than her?
She kept pondering it, questioning Ned, questioning herself, asking herself, where did she go wrong?
Her brother walked into the room, avoiding her eyes as always. He'd always been cowardly like that. Give him a few bandits and he'd happily charge them down while savoring the terror in their eyes. But a distraught woman and he disappeared faster than a patron at a whore house who was told he'd fathered a child.
Alaric opened his mouth and after giving her the chance to inspect the whiteness of his teeth he closed it again. Ashara wanted to ignore him but the letter clutched in his fist roused her enough to ask him "Have you heard of Elia?" She wasn't so far gone that she would forget her best friend and sister in all but blood.
Allaric gave her a gentle smile as he found his courage "Yes. She has arrived safely at Dragonstone. Apparently chaos reigned inside the Red keep when word spread that Aerys wanted to burn the Capital down, allowing her to escape in the confusion with her children."
Ashara exhaled in relief as the weight of not knowing fell off her shoulders. Perhaps she should see her in person so that any last doubts could be erased. Her eyes glanced back at the crib and hopefully remind her of better times. "That's wonderful brother. I'll start packing and join her as soon as possible in Sunspear." She tried smiling with her eyes but it fell flat. Her brother's grimace told her so.
"No, Dorne needs, no, We need you to travel North not South" said Alaric before falling silent at the fierce glare he received when he said North. "No, not there, I mean the Westerlands."
Her ire subsided when she realized she wouldn't have to prostrate herself before that betrayer. She still didn't know if she wanted to slap him or kiss him. "What for?" She asked without enthusiasm.
"Tywin is dead and the Rebels have backed Cersei so we need to back his son Tyrion. Prince Doran wants an alliance with Tyrion to prevent an Western front from opening up." Alaric said facing the window instead of her.
Ashara would have laughed if she could. Her child wasn't even skull and bones but she was already being auctioned off to the next bidder. Unbidden her head turned North. But what was she really waiting for, hoping for?
Ned wouldn't ride down and make her his wife again. He'd be fracturing his alliance and cause his own death or a new war. Maybe not today, but bad blood would fester and it would happen in their children's days. If anything she knew of Ned was true then it was that he did not relish war. He hated it.
"Am I to be betrothed then? Or do you merely want me to spread my legs?" She asked with more heat than she intended. She held no illusions. The chivalrous and gallant lords of the South wouldn't see her as anything but a good roll in the hay now that she was dishonored. The hunt was over, the little deer had been caught and buggered. No chase, no thrill, no suitors.
She smirked a bit at the sudden tension in her brother's shoulders. The crinkling of crushed paper was music to her ears. At least someone suffered along with her. At least someone cared that she'd be bedded by the ugliest man, no boy in the Seven kingdoms. Even in Dorne people had heard of the Imp and the scorn Tywin had for him.
Alaric finally turned towards her with regret shining in his eyes "I wish I could say no. But we guard the gates to Dorne. If the Reach surrenders then the Martells would let all of Dorne burn before they would hand over Elia and her children. They will let the rebels break their army in the desert. The Martells will win but not decisively. At best, our lands will be ransomed back to us. We might not be the Daynes of Starfall anymore unless…" he trailed off
Ashara scoffed "So you want the Imp to be too dazzled by my tits to look at how much he's paying for our precious Starfall?" She glared at her brother for a bit though it held some appeal to her. Not the bedding part but the purpose it would give her.
Dishonored ladies didn't have a happy ending unless their house was powerful enough that an alliance was still desirable. Otherwise they ended up being silent sisters, septas and wives to knights seeking favor.
Her house wasn't powerful. It only had the prestige that the Kingsguard gave them and even that was fading fast with Arthur's actions. Her best hope was being a lady in waiting for the rest of her life to Elia. She loved Elia but she didn't want to be stuck in her shadow forever. Nor did she want to end up an old crone who had a few bastards through random flings. She wanted to outshine Ned. To show him what he had missed. Being the lady of the Rock could give her that. It was petty but she'd have an army to compete with the Tullies and Ned would have to beg her to stop her new husband or lover, whatever.
Alaric took a firmer stance and put on his lord's voice "Ashara, we all need to make sacrifices. Your brother was willing to give his life for us, all I'm asking is that you wed a boy. He's young and inexperienced. You can rule the Westerlands in all but name if you play it right." he paused a bit to let it sink in. "If you don't then the rebels will march down the Prince's pass, kill Arthur and then consolidate the north of Dorne by swinging west to put Starfall to the sword. At best only your family dies, at worst Elia as well." He said as gravely as possible
Ashara however, scoffed again. "You think you can intimidate me with that doom and gloom speech?" perhaps it would have worked before she met Ned. But no one was better at doom and gloom with a sprinkle of 'woe is me' than him. She briefly wondered if it had been pity, that drove her, not love but she cast it aside. "You can flee Starfall and Arthur can abandon a dead prince. Both of you only need to move to Sunspear to be safe. Stupid vows and pride stop the lot of you. So I have to say a vow and give up my pride to save you?" She asked scornfully
Alaric glared back at her "Honor not pride Ashara! Honor is what held the Seven kingdoms together for so long. It was honor, not dragons that kept us from revolting until king Aerys went mad. It is honor that protects you against the savagery of men. Do you think you would have had only one bastard without honor?" he asked rhetorically "Ask your precious Ned what happens to wildling women or Oberyn to Essosi women." He paused only for a moment before he shouted "They get stolen! Not courted but kidnapped and then brutally raped until the life fades from their eyes. You'd be a broodmare that would make any nightmare you've had about being one look like a paradise. Clever words and fleeting smiles would be worthless. It's only honor that protects you. It's men like me and Arthur who protect you. But if we fall then who will?"
Ashara blinked and took a step back from the unexpected vitriol. She tried to find words but none could deny his truth. She had heard enough reports about the war to know what happened to the peasants. Forgotten honor meant villages were raped, raided and razed to the ground. A knight that would give his life to protect her wouldn't think twice about cutting down a peasant girl if she was in his way. She blinked at that realization
"It's status that protects me. A knight would cut down a peasant as easily as taking his fast if she looked at him wrong. Honor doesn't extend its protection very far, brother." She held up a hand to stall Alaric's retort "But I hear you brother. We won't have status for much longer. Arthur's star is dead and Elia will need to remarry if we want to survive this. I will try to wed this Imp or at least prepare him for Elia if she is forced to marry him instead."
She let out a hollow laugh "Is it cruel to hope for that?" She looked away from her brother "To hope for Dorne to burn so that we'd be desperate enough to wed our princess to a Dwarf?"
Her brother could only offer a softly spoken "No" and a reassuring stare she saw from the corner of her eye.
Mace Tyrell
His hunting knife flayed off a thin slice of his pheasant and he popped it into his mouth. He knew Stannis couldn't see his enjoyment of the succulent piece of flesh so he made some exaggerated tummy rubs to get the point across. He loved this little game. Mostly because he was winning, but still.
Storm's end was impregnable not just virtually but literally. The keep stood on an island that was only connected to the mainland by one puny bridge. Sure it was wide enough to fit twelve horsemen side to side but it was also raised and inaccessible. He literally couldn't cross the chasm and the two hundred foot drop into the sea made even his bravest banner men reluctant to jump it. His fleet had little more success. There was only a small beach to land on and his men got cut down by arrows before they could do any damage. The ships were a nice blockade but otherwise useless since the archers couldn't fire high up enough to make a difference.
Sieging the bitch was his only option. At least that was what he had told Aerys whenever he complained or asked for more men. Mace wasn't a fool despite what everyone thought. Cowards arrived late and got nothing but loyally besieging the rebel leader's keep fulfilled his duty and he could name his price once Aerys ran out of men. He'd be the kingmaker and ransom the Iron throne back.
At least that was the plan. Simple and effective. Nothing could go wrong. Except for a Targaryen deciding he could fly. He would have thrown in with Robert if he knew the king was gonna kill himself. The greatest casualty list in this war was from a suicide attempt instead of a battle. It was honestly depressing on all fronts.
He looked over at his second in command Randyl Tarly "So what did the old man say?" He asked now that they were done with supper.
Randyl swallowed his mouthful quickly with a sour look on his face. Hmm would he ever find a cook capable of pleasing that palette he silently wondered
"Lord Jon Arryn agreed to give Elia and her children free passage to return to us in exchange for your terms."
Mace grinned widely. The concession of food to Stannis, a six month truce and removal of the trade blockade to the crown lands were minor losses compared to the victory of gaining the next heir to the throne. Prince Aegon was of an age with his new baby girl and Elia would be surrounded by Reach men. Dorne was practically powerless, they would have no choice but to accept his marriage proposal and do so with a smile on their faces.
"Good job Randyl, with this we are one step closer to winning this war" on our terms he thought
Lord Tarly kept glowering at his plate though "Princess Elia escaped by ship." He said bluntly and stared at Mace's face for a long moment before continuing "The ink was already dry before we found out she was gone. A Kingsguard smuggled them out while the Red keep was in chaos."
Mace snapped his head to his fleet "Perhaps an escort is needed to make sure she travels safely" he nodded to himself. Yes he could still salvage this. He'd lose a few ships hunting down the princess in Shipbreaker's bay but that would be worth it.
Tarly crushed those hopes with the grace of a bucking bull "She is probably in Sunspear by now."
Mace growled at that and drank deeply to drown his sorrows. Fucking hell, he wasted time, gold and respect and was left standing by his lonesome with his cock flapping in the wind. The food didn't matter much. The Reach had plenty but it would take even longer to take Storm's end now. Worse was that the rebels were gaining in strength while he was bound by his own fucking truce.
Oathbreaker wasn't a title he could afford on any day. Especially not after he got shafted like that by the rebels. He sighed. Well, he could just play it as him being the loyal banner man doing what was right. He snorted to himself. Not that anyone with any skin in the game would believe that. Something his mother would be all too happy to point out, rub in, and salt on occasion.
He took another sip of his wine as he looked towards Storm's end. At least things could be worse. He could almost make out the figure of Stannis doing his daily patrol along the wall. It was too bad he couldn't hear his teeth grinding. It would surely put him in a better mood.
"Anything else of interest happen?" He asked more to get his mind of this disaster than any genuine interest.
Randyl did his best grizzly bear impression and growled out "Lady Ashara Dayne was spotted leaving Dorne through the Prince's pass and is traveling up the Ocean road. Men have let her pass since we're allies but the implications are clear."
Mace blinked and waited, he took another sip of his wine to draw out the moment. But nope, the bear's mouth had already gone into hibernation. "Remind us!" He snapped a little more abrupt then he normally would but he was feeling a little peevish after being made a fool by the rebels.
"The West what else" Tarly responded even shorter "Marriage for an army."
Mace raised an eyebrow " A Dayne for a kingdom?" He asked disbelievingly, that was rather cheap. Not to mention he'd heard rumors that that particular Dayne had been dishonored. No self respecting lord would marry her to his household knights let alone wed her himself.
Tarly snorted in either disgust or amusement. Knowing him probably mostly disgust "The boy is young and needs Dorne's support to legitimize his rule. He'll say yes and pretend she is the maiden herself."
Mace pondered that for a moment "Has my mother sent a competing offer? And what off the rebels?"
"The rebels back the sister and Lady Olenna is traveling to the Rock to negotiate an alliance with lord Tyrion while lord Willas has been sent to court Cersei."
Huh whoever agreed first or accepted the lowest offer. Hmmm not a bad idea. But he doubted it would work well with the rebels driving up the price. Maybe, he could influence things to go their way somehow. Hmm he needed to think this over.
"I think I'll retire for the night lord Tarly unless you have more information?"
The man shook his head and quickly drank his wine before slamming it back on the table and moving out of the tent. Mace got the impression the man was very eager to leave. Perhaps he had somewhere else to be? Hmm maybe he should ask around to see what lord Tarly did for fun? Maybe they could bond over it? Mother did love to harp on how important it was to endear your banner men to you. He nodded to himself and drank another sip.
A week ago
Ashara shifted a little bit as her dainty little ass reminded her yet again that she was not made for the saddle. But she was almost at the Tower of Joy so she held in her desire to take a much needed break. Even her hardened household guard seemed harried by the murderous pace she'd kept. She did it for a reason though.
Alaric expected her in the Westerlands in a month but she could linger at the Tower for a few days with her brother if she made up the difference. She wasn't blind to the possibility that she may never see her brother again after she was bound in matrimony. Either of them could die before the first snowflakes fell.
Though it was still summer, autumn was not far off and who knows what could happen. She certainly hadn't expected to be torn from Ned's arms only to be sold to a dwarf.
She looked on as two white cloaks walked out of the Tower in the distance. Ashara took a moment to admire their pristine white cloaks and polished steel, the widely acknowledged pinnacle of knighthood.
It was almost laughable how overrated they were. Sure they were the Stranger incarnate up close but a few arrows would kill them all the same. Even plate got pierced when fired upon in close quarters. Still, men loved their shiny pieces of metal and who was she to question that?
"Greetings brother" She announced herself if the rather prominent banner behind her hadn't done so already.
"Ashara" Arthur greeted her back, closely followed by his brother in arms. "What brings you here?"
Ashara shrugged "A few supplies so that you don't starve, another plea for you to abandon this foolishness and my marriage"
Arthur had already drooped his eyes in exasperation and had opened his mouth to once more refuse her before his eyes popped wide open "You're getting married!" he exclaimed "But?…Stark…Did he take you back?"
A flash of pain and regret stabbed into her but she let none show. "Of course not. That ship has sailed, capsized and is now feasting in the Drowned god's halls. " though she still wished it weren't so "No, the war is turning against us and would have been lost to us if King's landing hadn't burned. It was most gracious of the king to take out a rebel army to help his lowly servants" She drawled and enjoyed the narrowed eyes of Hightower and the shock in her brother's. "So prince Doran has decided to barter me away for that very same rebel army. Tywin is dead but his children live and both sides are scrambling to woo them. I'm the Royal attempt"
"How did King's landing burn?" asked Hightower before Arthur could ask anything
Ashara threw him an annoyed look though she knew they didn't get any news up here. It kinda was the point. "King Aerys ordered his Pyromancers to burn the City after Lord Tywin sacked the city. His grace was apparently most cross that his old friend entered as an ally only to turn his cloak and burn his city. So the wise king decided to return the favor tenfold."
Shocked stares greeted her cheeky explanation but she cared little. Instead she looked towards her brother silently hoping for him to see the folly in following Rhaegar's commands. She quietly ignored the curses directed at the now deceased lord of Casterly Rock.
"Why you?" asked Arthur in confusion "Wasn't there someone else? How could, Elia…?"
Ashara gave him a smile for ignoring the betrayal of lord Tywin in favor of his sister's nuptials. "I don't know about Elia but I think I was chosen for my beauty. No doubt tales of nobles making fools of themselves to impress me have reached prince Doran. He must hope for a repeat."
Arthur's eyebrows furrowed together "And if this Tyrion casts you aside as well?"
She grunted at the stab at the scab that was Ned's memory "Then I'll cajole him to accept princess Elia instead. If he says no to that as well then I'll go home with my tail between my legs, instead of staying with his sword"
"You'd bargain Rhaegar's wife away?" said an aghast Hightower as if he couldn't believe his own ears.
She rolled her eyes at the hissyfit. "We're women. Being sold is what we're best at. Deal with it." It's not like you're being wedded and bedded by the end of the month she thought sourly.
None of them protested her being a broodmare, instead Hightower argued "Lady Elia married prince Rhaegar and as such belongs to house Targaryen, only king Aegon can give her away again."
Yes that's the real thorny issue here, Ashara thought "Sadly we cannot wait for Aegon to be weaned of his mother's tit so that another may suckle it." She yet again enjoyed the looks of outrage directed at her. "The Crownlands and Dorne are exhausted and only the Roses stand between us and certain doom. And we all know how helpful they've been thus far."
Everyone present grimaced at that flowery reminder.
"Lord Mace still hasn't left Storm's end?" it was more of an statement than a question but Ashara decided it deserved an answer anyway.
"Nope, still feasting and jesting to taunt Lord Stannis Baratheon. It may only be corpses inside by now but I'm not sure if Lord Mace would know the difference."
"How certain are you of swaying the Westerlands sister?"
Ashara shrugged "The boy has a cock. That's all I know. Usually that's enough."
He rolled his eyes at her "More is perhaps needed sweet sister. Not every man will gladly chop off his sword hand for the chance that you might look at him. I'll accompany you and add weight to your cause."
"You'd abandon your oaths?" asked Hightower sternly as he already loosened his sword from his sheathe.
Arthur smiled disarmingly at him "Lady Lyanna has given birth." as if that explained all, but when Hightower started to draw he continued "Prince Rhaegar only said to protect her until she gave him his daughter. Whatever love existed between them was lost when Lady Lyanna heard of her family's fate. Only the child mattered and it's the wrong sex." He shook his head slightly "Not that the prophecy matters anymore." He looked towards her again "Lady Lyanna yet lives and so does her son. We can ransom her back to the rebels to buy time while we raise sellsword hosts with Lannister gold."
Ashara raised an eyebrow while Hightower slid his sword back into its sheath as he considered it. "They'd risk the war for her?" he asked
"The way Ned told it, Lord Robert and he would do anything for her and Lord Arryn could never deny them anything for long." She answered truthfully. After a moment of recollecting some drunker tales she added "Lord Robert would happily bend over and ask for the Mountain that rides to bugger him if it gave him Lyanna back."
Both men grimaced at the mental picture and averted their heads. Ashara rolled her eyes at their hypocrisy. Two girls going at it and they drool enough to birth a river but two guys, Seven forbid.
Hightower gathered his wits again "I'll ask Queen Rhaelle. With prince Rhaegar gone and king Aerys missing she is the ruling Targaryen now. She'll decide Lyanna's fate but I will release you from your vow Arthur to guard the tower. We need Lannister swords to save the realm."
Ashara looked at her brother and wondered if he would actually help her. Sure the Sword of the morning still held sway but she was supposed to fight with her tits and nobles quickly found her face whenever Arthur was around.
"And we'll get them" she assured Hightower before saying "But you can't be my shadow brother. To get swords I need to make him unsheathe his, and he won't do it if he thinks you'll unsheathe yours and plant it between his cheeks."
Again both men grimaced at the imagery it conjured before their eyes but her point was made and they were unlikely to forget it.
"I'll remember sister." Arthur said grudgingly clearly not enjoying the prospect of standing idly by.
She looked into his eyes and saw the truth of it. He was ashamed of doing nothing, of being powerless but accepted it. He'd had plenty of practice standing outside the royal bedchambers while the king raped the queen. He'd look the other way for the sake of the realm.
"Good, now that that's settled. Where will lady Lyanna and her child go while we negotiate with Lord Tyrion." she asked
Arthur spoke up "She is too weak to travel and unwelcome in Dorne and the Reach will take her and trade her for a copper if we go north. She must remain here."
Ashara nodded at the wisdom and was slightly relieved. She would have welcomed spending time with Ned's sister once upon a time but now it was only a bitter reminder. Still, she had to see her for herself so that she could at least offer words of comfort should she speak to Ned in the negotiations.
"I wish to see her before we depart." she glanced over her shoulders at her tired company of household guards "And a few hours of rest for my men shouldn't be amiss either."
The Kingsguard both looked uneasy but eventually relented.
Author notes
Please note that Elia was not raped and murdered along with her children on Tywin's orders here. Noble hostages were worth a fortune in medieval warfare and a single great battle could capture the equivalent of twenty years of GDP in hostage ransoms. So it's inconceivable in this mindset to kill a noble when you are not forced to, chivalry aside. Ransoming her back for continued peace was the expected outcome should the city fall. That she was killed brutally pissed off Dorne as a whole and the Martels in particular. It sets a bad precedent for all nobles, like when the Freys violated guest right.
So the Martells hold no hard feelings against the Lannisters in particular making an alliance still viable in their mind. Desperation makes friends out of even hated foes.
Ashara's appearance
I'm using Yennefer of Vengerberg from the witcher as my base for how Ashara looks mostly because I love her sarcastic attitude and the looks match. That and I have not watched the show. I read the books back in 2010 after I read the show's summary and instantly knew it was going to be great. Sadly knowing every plot point makes the show boring as fuck. I still can't get past the first episode and it just feels like it's a waste of my time. Expect slow updates since i'm not confident on my characterization.
Ashara's attitude
Yes she does not act like a medieval woman should. She's not submissive at all to her brothers. I blame it on Dorne's more liberal mindset and her overall resentment where she does not care enough to hold her tongue. She is a woman who is out of fucks to give and is one more tragedy away from committing suicide. She is masking her sadness and grief with humor. When everything hurts and you see nothing that can help you, what else can you do but laugh and cry?