"What are you going to do?" Sansa asked excitedly. Brienne gave her an exasperated look. "I don't know why you're looking at me like that, Brienne. This is exciting and I am going to stand by your side for all of it!"
Brienne smiled at the sentiment and at the sparkle in Sansa's pretty blue eyes. "You could just get pregnant yourself, you know," Brienne commented lightly, swatting Sansa's hand away from her stomach as she tried to touch it yet again. It had not even begun to swell yet and already Sansa was petting her. Brienne did not know how long she would be able to put up with this. She stifled a groan as she realised that Jaime would be even worse.
Sansa gave her a withering look. "I have told you, Brienne. Tyrion and I are going to wait until things are a bit safer." Brienne pursed her lips. "Don't look at me like that! Our children will hardly like each other anyway, so it won't make a difference if they're the same age. Yours will be born with her hand reached out for a sword and mine will be born bowing."
"Is mine to be a girl?" Brienne asked with amusement. They reached the ramparts, feeling the chill air.
"Yes," Sansa said definitively, "and my first will be a boy to secure the North." Brienne gave her a sad smile that Sansa returned. "Will Jaime want a boy?"
Brienne shrugged. "Most men do but Jaime is not most men." Sansa snorted and Brienne grinned. Perhaps she was a bit excited to tell Jaime too. She looked up as she noticed the noise of an army. She glanced at Sansa who shrugged.
"The rest of the Lannister army arrive today," she said simply. Brienne glared at her.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Sansa gaped at her, stopping to survey the courtyard below where Jaime was standing, tall and proud. "I don't know if you remember, Lady Lannister, but I was trying to speak to you this morning when you practically dragged me to the maester's to have the baby confirmed!"
Brienne smiled a bit sheepishly. That was quite an accurate description for how Brienne had encouraged Sansa to come with her to the maester's, fearing the idea of going on her own and wanting to wait until it was confirmed to tell Jaime. "Well, Lady Lannister," Brienne replied, enjoying the way Sansa's eyes raged at her official title, "I do apologise. I suppose I should wait to tell Jaime, then." Brienne looked down at her husband a bit mournfully. She was looking forward to the way his eyes would light up upon her telling him but he was about to be reunited with his friend and his army.
As if in answer, the Winterfell gates opened. "No, you should tell him now," Sansa hurried, grabbing Brienne's forearm and starting to walk towards the stairs. "I'll greet the army. I am the Lady of Winterfell."
Brienne smiled in gratitude at Sansa. They reached the bottom of the steps as the first few Lannister troops rode in, in their gleaming armour and on beautiful horses. Brienne nearly rolled her eyes. Lannisters.
From the way that Jaime's face lit up at seeing them, Brienne knew that one of the three must be Addam Marbrand, her husband's childhood friend. Sansa was at Jaime's side before Brienne, whispering something in his ear. Jaime turned curiously to Brienne and Brienne knew that Sansa had not told him the news.
As his eyes met hers, Brienne lay her hands on her stomach. Even a few metres away, Brienne could see the very second that Jaime realised what she was telling her. He turned fully from his arriving troops and in a few strides was right before her, covering her hands with his hand and stump and falling to his knees before her.
"Truly?" he asked, looking up at her as he planted a kiss on her flat stomach. Brienne flushed, knowing that the Lannister troops were looking at her. She glanced over and found Sansa and the man Brienne thought might be Addam Marbrand staring at them with amusement. Brienne returned her eyes to Jaime, whose eyes were wet with tears.
"Truly," she returned. He pressed another kiss to her stomach and then jumped up and covered her lips with his own, cupping her neck with his hand and bringing her as close as he possibly could. Even when they pulled their lips away from each other's a few seconds - or a few hours - later, Jaime kept their foreheads together.
"We're having a baby," Jaime breathed. Brienne chuckled, not caring what a spectacle they were making of themselves.
"We are," she said, bringing his left hand down to her stomach again. Jaime grinned.
"I love you," he said. Brienne smiled and returned the sentiment with a short kiss to his lips. After a few more seconds, Jaime grinned. "I have to speak to Addam. Come on."
Jaime's hand at her waist, Brienne was led over to where Addam Marbrand was speaking quietly to Sansa Stark, a smirk not dissimilar to Jaime's almost constant one on his attractive face. "Addam," Jaime said fondly, though he did not let go of Brienne to shake his hand or greet him in any way physically.
"Jaime," Addam said, grinning at them both. "Who is this then?" he asked with a waggle of his eyebrows. Sansa smiled beside him.
"This is Lady Brienne Lannister," Jaime said, squeezing Brienne's side and looking up at her. Brienne met his eyes which still sparkled. "You might also know her as the Maid of Tarth, though I must say that that title is no longer applicable as she is not only my wife but also pregnant with my child."
"Jaime!" Brienne admonished immediately, shoving his hand from her waist. Jaime only snickered, inciting a scowl from her. Brienne turned away from his laughter and sparkling eyes to Addam. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ser Addam. I am Jaime's wife."
"I wish you luck with that venture, my lady," Addam said, causing a bark of laughter to emerge from Brienne's throat and a squawk of protest to come from Jaime. "I grew up with Jaime. I am glad to see him so well."
His comment was so earnest that Brienne decided to like him immediately. "Ser Addam, I would be glad to discuss your troops," Sansa said, her best lady voice on. "What were your plans for their accommodation?"
"We would be glad to stay in our tents, Lady Stark," Addam said with an easy smile.
"Wonderful," Sansa said, for that had been her plan. "I can, of course, offer you yourself more superior accommodation."
"That would be wonderful, my lady," Addam said, nodding. His attention was then turned to a call of "Addam!" from across the courtyard. Brienne watched as Sansa's Lady Stark mask softened at the sight of her husband approaching. Addam greeted Tyrion well, going down on one knee to hug Jaime's brother.
When he stood again, Tyrion said, "I see you have met my wife and goodsister."
"Your wife?" Addam repeated, staring at Sansa, mouth agape. "Well, I must say I am surprised," he said in a splutter. Brienne and Sansa shared a look and both tried to stifle their laughter.
Sansa smiled down at her husband. "It was her idea," Tyrion said fondly. Jaime and Brienne met each other's eye and had to hide their smirks. Sansa and Tyrion were the very picture of a couple in love, not that either of them knew it. "Now, when do I get watch Addam go at it with my goodsister?" Tyrion asked with a waggle of his eyebrows. Brienne choked in surprise.
Jaime curled his arm around Brienne's waist, squeezing tightly, and Brienne looked up to find Jaime glaring at his brother. Brienne poked him in the stomach. "I'm talking about sparring," Tyrion said though his wink at Brienne made her certain that he knew exactly what his words had implied.
"She can't," Jaime said immediately. Brienne's eyebrows flew up and she stood, shoving Jaime away from her.
"And why is that, Jaime Lannister?" she demanded, her arms itching for her sword at her waist, though she wasn't sure if she wanted to spar with Addam or shove it into Jaime's stomach. "I'm pregnant not ill, you arrogant twit." She turned away from her husband and raised her eyebrows at Jaime's friend, ignoring Tyrion's sharp breath of shock at her revelation. "What about it?" Addam hesitated and looked at Jaime. "He has nothing to do with this decision."
Addam shrugged and unsheathed his sword from his waist, ignoring the gaping look that Jaime was giving him. Brienne smirked and unsheathed Oathkeeper. They stepped away from the onlookers, a group which was growing as Sansa's men dealt with the Lannister army's horses. At least the Lannister soldiers would understand who they were getting as their Lannister lady.
XXX
Jaime watched Brienne fight, sat on a bench next to where the training swords were stored, his leg bouncing. Sansa kept giving him questioning looks that Jaime was ignoring. His wife had just told him she was pregnant with his child and she was now standing in front of him, fighting stance ready, not even using a training sword.
He knew why she was annoyed with him. Before they were married, he'd sworn never to hold her back from anything. And, here he was, asking her not to do something that she loved. Jaime knew he was in the wrong. He knew that Addam would not truthfully hurt her, that they were both too skilled to actually hurt the other, but, sitting here, watching her and knowing that with every step she took their baby with her, it was almost too much for Jaime to bear.
This was his second chance at life, second chance at happiness. The thought of losing that was too much, too horrible.
But Jaime also knew who his second chance was. He knew Brienne and nine months of not sparring, not fighting, would turn her to insanity. Laying his hands flat on the bench next to him, Jaime screamed at his heart to calm down, to trust his wife, to remember how good she was.
And, when she started, that was too easy.
She never smiled when she sparred. The reason she always won was because she took it seriously, pretended she had a real reason to fight and that gave her enough momentum to win. Jaime could only hope that she was not imagining his face as she parried and thrust.
She was phenomenal. His wife was phenomenal. Watching her made Jaime's hand twitch and it made him long for his second hand. He would have loved to be as much a match for her as Addam was. He had been once.
Her body moved flawlessly. Her footwork was incredible. Every step was calculated two steps before. Every strike or parry was known to her before Addam had even considered what he was going to do. Jaime could see it.
And, by the time they were finished and sweating and Brienne declared the champion, all Jaime could think about was getting Brienne upstairs and fucking her until she screamed.
XXX
"Gonna have you against the wall," Jaime groaned as soon as the door was barred behind them. Brienne moaned as Jaime tugged at her laces, her hand coming down to assist him. It took too long but, as soon as his finger was inside her, Brienne's head was tipped back, crying out her pleasure.
It wasn't enough, the orgasm he quickly gave her with his fingers. His wonderful wonderful fingers that knew the insides of her so well.
Brienne reached down to quickly undo the front of his breeches, her fingers still shaking from pleasure, clumsy with the laces. But she managed it eventually and then he was free and he was pushing her up against the wall and then fucking her.
One leg around his waist, Brienne arched her hips to fuck him back so that they slammed together passionately, with force. "Jaime, Jaime, Jaime," Brienne chanted, wrapping her arms around his neck and lacing one hand in his hair when he took her nipple into his mouth.
They didn't last long. Brienne didn't expect them to. And, when they were undone with a roar each, Jaime lay his forehead against Brienne's heart, panting and with his hand still braced against the wall. Brienne released her leg from his waist. When it reached the floor, it did not want to keep her upright though she forced it. Her whole body wanted to collapse.
"I'm sorry," Jaime whispered against her chest. Brienne unlaced her fingers from his golden curls. He looked up at her. "I'm sorry."
"Jaime," Brienne sighed, pushing slightly at his chest to make him step away from her. He did so. When their bodies separated, Brienne let out a whine, eyes closed. "Jaime, I want to fight."
"And you should," Jaime said quietly, "but I can't pretend not to be scared every time you do." Brienne swallowed. "I sat there and I just had to keep reminding yourself that you're amazing and you can fight and I mean, fuck- Brienne, you're fantastic and I trust Addam not to accidentally hurt you because you're only sparring and he's good but Gods, Brienne, if it was someone else-"
Brienne stepped close to him again, her hand on his neck, her thumb brushing his jaw. She shushed him in what she hoped was a soothing manner. She did understand why he was upset, why he was worried. She reached down for his hand and pushed her shirt up with it, lying it against her flat stomach. Head pushed against his, Brienne met his eyes.
"I understand, Jaime. I was angry and I'm not going to stop sparring, not yet, not until the baby is bigger, but I understand."
Jaime swallowed and nodded. "And the war?" he said, his voice cracking. Brienne bit her lip. She'd barely had time to consider it. Whenever she and Jaime had discussed having a baby, they had not discussed what that would mean for Brienne's promise to accompany Jaime to war.
Brienne shrugged helplessly. "I don't know, Jaime. I- You have an important role and I don't want you to be distracted." Brienne hated every word. Jaime smiled a bit tremulously at her.
"We have a few days. We can figure it out," he said, rolling his head from side to side against her forehead. Brienne smiled without her teeth. They stayed there, eyes closed for a few more moments.
"I love you, Jaime," Brienne whispered and Jaime smiled, bringing their lips together shortly and then pulling away again.
"I love you too."
XXX
Jaime and Brienne rejoined Sansa, Tyrion and Addam an hour or so later, after a bath and a change of clothes. It showed how much more comfortable Brienne had become with sex that she hardly reacted to Tyrion and Addam's comments when they entered the room. Jaime knew that it was very obvious where they had been and what they had been doing.
"Dinner will be here in about fifteen minutes," Sansa informed them and Jaime ignored the little smirk on her lips. She had clearly been spending too much time with her husband.
"Wonderful," Jaime said and he and Brienne took their seats on the chaise longue that had been left for them. Addam was sitting opposite on an armchair, an awful smirk on his face. "How are you finding Winterfell, Addam?"
"Very well, Jaime. Tyrion and his lovely wife have been showing me the highlights." Jaime heard Addam's sarcasm and knew that he hated the North as much as Jaime and Tyrion did. "I have to say that I am glad I have not married into the cold like you two."
Tyrion snorted. "Trust me, it was my one holdback." Sansa's lips only twitched. Tyrion's eyes narrowed at her. Jaime thought it might have been because Sansa had her one-true-love mask on, as Tyrion termed it, because Addam was there and Tyrion didn't like it. For that matter, nor did Jaime. His goodsister was actually very witty and good company, when she allowed herself to be.
"And I have not married the North," Jaime corrected. Addam's eyebrows rose. "Brienne and I will have to rule Casterly Rock and Tarth one day."
"One day far away," Sansa said with her lady's smile. Jaime lay his hand on Brienne's stomach. Addam rolled his eyes with a tut.
"You have gone soft, Jaime," he said. "You once told me that you would never need a woman and only fight evil for your entire life."
Jaime laughed and rubbed his head on Brienne's shoulder fondly. He remembered making that statement. He could not have been older than twelve. He and Addam, at Crakehall, were in the brook with a few of the other squires and Jaime had jumped up on a rock and declared that, holding out his training sword. "I married a knight so that I could fulfil that dream," Jaime told Addam, ignoring Brienne's swat on his shoulder. Despite the fact that she did want to be a knight, she did not like him referring to her as such, even though she was a far superior knight that most, just without the title.
"Ah, so when the war is over, are you going to travel the realms like hedge knights?" Addam asked, grinning. Tyrion snorted. Jaime looked up at Brienne wistfully. He found her smiling at the idea. Jaime rubbed her stomach and she swatted him away again.
"We wish," Jaime replied for them both, turning back to Addam. "Unfortunately we have duties to Tarth and Casterly Rock."
"Will you live separately then?"
Jaime snorted. "No."
Sansa looked at them curiously. "What will you do, then? You can hardly travel between the two."
Jaime had not fully considered it truthfully, but his ever-practical wife clearly had. "My father will hopefully live until this one is old enough to look after Tarth on her own," she said, rubbing her stomach.
"Her?" Jaime questioned, the idea of a little girl with Brienne's hair and Brienne's eyes and a tiny version of Oathkeeper in her hand settling in Jaime's mind quite pleasantly. Brienne flushed at Jaime's teasing grin. "Are we having a girl, wench?"
"I hope so," Sansa declared, turning the room's attention from Brienne. "You can send her to Winterfell to learn how to be a lady."
Brienne barked out a laugh. Jaime watched Addam's features turn to surprise at Sansa's joke. "Or we could send her to squire under Arya," Brienne teased. Sansa scowled.
"I will steal her away and teach her to sew and how to braid hair." Brienne only laughed. Jaime could not imagine that, even if they had seven girls, any of them would be the little ladies that Sansa dreamed of.
"I am sorry, Sansa, but you and my brother will have to provide your own Lannister ladies to make up for our knights," Jaime said, winking at his brother whose grin fell. Sansa only turned to Tyrion with a smile and a sparkle in her blue eyes. While they had been bathing earlier, Brienne had told Jaime of Sansa's excitement about the prospect of having a child. Jaime knew that a child being born a dwarf was his brother's greatest fear.
"Jaime says you have children, Addam," Brienne said, distracting the room from Tyrion's faltering grin. Jaime lay his head on her shoulder and her hand almost automatically went to play with his hair, just the way Jaime liked it.
Addam nodded. "My wife is at Ashemark with them. Three girls and a boy, named for Jaime."
Jaime grinned at the reminder and inclined his head at Addam. Perhaps they would return the favour. Jaime wouldn't mind his son being called Addam. Jaime found Brienne looking at him in surprise. "What, wench, you don't believe I am worthy?" Jaime asked, teasing, though Brienne looked at him as though she thought he was being self-deprecating. Which he was not.
"I believe you are very worthy," she said, stroking the hair back from his face. Jaime smiled and then looked to their friends, who were staring at them with nothing short of disgust. Jaime snorted and pressed a kiss to Brienne's jaw before sitting up properly.
"Where is this dinner, Sansa?" he demanded and his goodsister gave him an exasperated sigh, as though he made her life so very difficult.
XXX
Dinner was completed, their plates cleared away though they stayed at the table in anticipation of dessert. "When will Arya be back?" Jaime asked Sansa, whose stomach stirred with unease at Jaime's question. She had not shared with Tyrion, Brienne or Jaime what Sansa had gone south to do.
Sansa shrugged. "She wanted to be beside her smith. She went to tell him that she would marry him and then to help with the war. It was too difficult for her being here while the action goes on down south and, anyway, I have Brienne to protect me."
Sansa watched Jaime's face flinch slightly but she looked at Brienne who inclined her head once. She imagined that, as he had earlier, Jaime objected to Brienne being in any sort of combat situation while she was pregnant. Sansa quite agreed, which was why she was going to find someone else to do the job alongside Brienne, not because she wasn't capable, but because Sansa cared too much for her and her baby.
"When will we move out, Jai?" Addam asked. Sansa almost snorted out loud at the nickname. She saw Brienne make a funny face too but Jaime's face didn't change.
"Two days. I want to get all the men together and go over the attack plan with you." Addam nodded.
Tyrion cleared his throat, drawing the room's amused attention. "Enough of war and politics now, if you please. Let's discuss something else."
Sansa seized the opportunity. "Yes, what are you going to call your baby, Jaime and Brienne?"
Brienne snorted. "Sansa, I found out I was pregnant five hours ago. I don't have any ideas."
Sansa scoffed. "You told me that you've been trying to get pregnant since the battle. You must have some ideas." Brienne flushed bright red and even Jaime blushed slightly. "If it's a girl, you should call her Sansa."
Brienne snorted, shooting Sansa's hopes. Jaime turned to Brienne and brushed his fingers over her hand, making Sansa purse her lips and look at Tyrion. She wondered whether they would ever be so openly affectionate. Of course, the difference was that Jaime and Brienne were in love and Sansa and Tyrion were essentially just friends who fucked.
"I always wanted a girl called Joanna," Jaime said quietly. Sansa heard Tyrion's sharp inhalation of breath and remembered that their mother had been called Joanna and she was supposedly extraordinarily kind and beautiful. Brienne smiled at Jaime.
"Then that's what we will call her," Brienne said. From Brienne's voice, Sansa was sure that she was set on the idea of their baby being a girl. "I always wanted to name a boy for my brother," Brienne said, slightly awkwardly. Sansa was rather surprised that Brienne had a brother and she nearly said something - before remembering that Brienne was the only heir to her island and, therefore, her brother must have died. Sansa swallowed the picture of Rickon laughing that sprung up in her head, the goodbye that Robb had given her.
"I think Galladon Lannister is a very nice name. Very knightly," Jaime said and Sansa smiled, glad that Brienne had shared her brother's death with at least one person. Galladon was a nice name.
"We can call him Gal," Sansa added. Brienne practically beamed. "And he can come to Winterfell and Tyrion can teach him to be scholarly and clever and he will be a maester."
Jaime and Brienne both levelled her with a glare that had her practically cackling. She saw Addam give her a look and figured that he must be surprised at her, given that she had been quite ladylike and masked for most of the day and before dinner. But she didn't like being like that when she was with her friends and Addam was clearly so fond of Jaime that Sansa decided to accept him, given that a begrudging fondness for Jaime had grown in her over the past month.
"All our children are going to be knights, Sansa Stark," Jaime said and Sansa grinned, looking at her husband whose eyes were sparkling.
"Not if Tyrion and I have anything to do with it. There are entirely too many knights and warriors in our family. Tyrion and I need some more on our side." Sansa hoped that she and Tyrion would provide some of them too. Perhaps they would allow Jaime and Brienne to steal some as knights. Sansa was happy to wait until Cersei was overthrown to have a child but she did want to have one soon after that, though Tyrion rarely mentioned the prospect.
"Are your children knightly or scholarly, Addam?" Brienne asked and Sansa turned her eyes onto Jaime's friend who was watching them with amusement.
Addam snorted. "Ironically, Jaime is far more scholarly than I would have anticipated with his name." Jaime cried out his disapproval though Brienne practically roared with laughter, a testament to the three goblets of ale she had drunk, Sansa was sure. "My third daughter is eight and she is already asking me for a sword. Perhaps I will send her to be a squire with you, Brienne."
Brienne smiled and nodded eagerly. Sansa knew that Brienne was eager for more girls to be allowed to do as they wished. Sansa quite agreed. "She couldn't learn from anyone better," Sansa said proudly, ignoring Brienne's blush and shake of her head. "You should see her current squire, Podrick. Surely he will be knighted soon and it will be entirely down to Brienne."
"Yes, he learned far more with her than he did with me," Tyrion said, giving his goodsister an appraising look. Sansa beamed and then the door opened. It was the maids, delivering dessert. As soon as they were in, Sansa could smell what they were having, though she could not see it yet and she had not been the one to order it. Her eyes widened and her stomach filled with joy at the prospect of lemon cakes.
Turning to her husband at her side, Sansa gave him the brightest smile she possibly could. "Did you do this?" she demanded happily as the lemon cake was laid in front of her. Tyrion smiled.
"Of course, my dear." Sansa squeaked with joy and pressed a kiss to his cheek before spinning back to her cake and digging in, ignoring the knowing looks she was receiving from Brienne and Jaime. "Lemon cakes were the only thing that made her smile when we were first married," Tyrion said to Addam. Sansa pursed her lips, a mouthful of lemon cake, and shot Tyrion an unhappy look. "And now they're an easy way to guarantee sex."
Tyrion did receive a slap to the arm for that but he only snickered. Sansa blushed at the laughter of her friends, especially Addam's. "Talking about sex is an easy way to guarantee none," she replied primly. Tyrion only rolled his eyes at her empty threat.
XXX
Jaime, Brienne and Addam retired to Jaime and Brienne's chambers at Jaime's invitation. Brienne was more than happy to spend more time with him. She was not as tired as she had been on previous days and it was a pleasure to watch Jaime so happy with someone else - and even more of a pleasure to hear about Jaime as a child.
Brienne had stopped drinking for the night but she found a carafe of wine in their storage unit for Jaime and Addam to share.
"Are you not drinking, love?" Jaime asked, rubbing her thigh to make her move up on the chaise longue. Addam sat opposite them on the armchair, a goblet of wine already in his hand.
Brienne shook her head. "I don't want to make myself feel worse in the morning."
Jaime nodded and then turned to Addam conspiratorially. "It's because she's got morning sickness." Addam snorted and Brienne met his eyes, shaking her head. Addam's eyes sparkled with amusement.
"How did you two meet?" Addam asked Brienne whose fingers were busy playing with the ends of Jaime's hair against the nape of his neck. Brienne smiled, nodding at Jaime to explain.
Jaime's explanation was always more fun to listen to than her telling of it. He over exaggerated at all the right points and didn't mention the parts that Brienne would not have wanted him to, like the baths at Harrenhal, which, admittedly, was a huge turning point in their relationship. Even so, it was quite rightly the most private part of their story.
When Jaime finished with his romantic arrival at Winterfell, Brienne turned a happy smile to him, kissing his temple. "And then we were married a week later," Jaime finished.
"And now she's having your baby," Addam added. Brienne inclined her head. "I am very happy for you, Jai. You deserve this." The sincerity in his voice made tears come to Brienne's eyes, something that, unfortunately, Jaime saw.
"Are you crying?" he demanded, amused.
"No," Brienne lied, turning her face away and pressing her fingers to her eyes.
"You so are," Jaime said, grinning like a cat. "Why are you crying?"
Brienne poked him hard in the stomach. "Because I'm pregnant, you dick."
Jaime slung his arm around her shoulders clumsily and pulled her close, pressing a smacking kiss to her cheek. "You're cute, wench," he said and then Brienne was sure that he was too deep in his cups. She shoved him off her with a laugh, looking at Addam and meeting his eyes once again, hoping to see him commiserating her in Jaime's stupidity. Instead, she found him staring at them wistfully.
Soon later, Jaime passed out on the bed, leaving Brienne to tuck him in like a nursemaid. He snored loudly when he was drunk. "Sorry about that," Brienne said awkwardly, nodding at Jaime and tucking her hair behind her ear. She picked up Jaime's goblet and placed it on the table where their breakfast was laid in the morning, so that the maids would take it to be washed.
"Brienne," Addam started and his voice was hesitant so Brienne turned to look at him inquisitively. "I just wanted to thank you." Brienne furrowed her eyebrows and was about to tell him not to be silly when he said, "no, I mean it. Thank you."
"What for?" she asked, sitting back down opposite it.
"I- I hated Cersei so much," Addam said quietly, glancing at a snoring Jaime. Brienne sucked breath in between her teeth. "Gods, I hated her. I watched my best friend turn into this warped monster, worse and worse every time he went home to see her. I knew what was going on, probably understood it before even he did, and I hated every minute of it."
Brienne listened, though she didn't want to. She hated thinking of what Cersei had done to Jaime, though she knew that Jaime was not at all faultless. "When we were fifteen, just before he was knighted, I confronted him about it, told him how wrong it was, what she was doing to him. We didn't speak for nearly two years. I went to King's Landing when I heard what was going on. I snuck in because I wanted to see him. He was my best friend and I wanted to protect him."
Addam had tears in his throat. Brienne's eyes were blurring with the knowledge of what would come next. "I found him in the godswood one day and, when he saw me, he started to cry and he told me everything that the Mad King was doing." Addam had tears on his cheeks now. "And then he killed him and I thought he'd done this amazing thing. I thought he'd see what honour was and I didn't see him for a few years. I visited King's Landing for Joffrey's christening."
"And you saw whose he was," Brienne finished for him. Addam nodded.
"And I realised that, despite what he had done, he was still under her thumb, still blindly obsessed with her. I confronted him again and he sent me away, telling me that I didn't know what I was talking about and what I was saying was treason. Even so, when my son came along, I remembered the boy who had wanted to be a knight and I remembered the boy that had sobbed about the queen's rape and the Starks' murder and named my son for him, with the hope that, one day, Jaime would remmeber who he was.
"When he was captured, I was halfway to Riverrun when his father talked me down. And then I heard that his hand was cut off. I felt as though I was grieving for him." Brienne swallowed, remembering Jaime's scream. "I wrote him a letter, promising my unwavering loyalty. He never replied. The next time I heard from him was just over a month ago, when he told me he was getting married and fighting against Cersei and he needed me and my army. I left the same day."
Brienne smiled and watched Addam wipe at his eyes. "I hated them for what they did to him. Cersei and his father. So, thank you. I don't know what changed in him but you brought him back, that boy who wanted to be a knight." Addam took her hand and squeezed it, bringing it to his mouth for a kiss. "You're a saint, Brienne."
Brienne shook her head. "I'm not sure about that."
Addam nodded at Jaime who was still snoring. "He certainly thinks so." With a laugh, Brienne shook her head again. "He looks at you like you hung the moon in the sky."
Swallowing roughly, Brienne smiled. "Thank you for being his friend," she said honestly. Addam grinned and winked at her, squeezing her hand again.
"Always."
