Jacqueline refused Maester Prycelle's help in the days after the Battle of the Blackwater. Instead, she met with an old, frail Asshai'i woman in the slums of King's Landing who wrapped Jacqueline's broken toes and checked her ribs, which thankfully were not broken, all while muttering to herself. All of it sounded like nonsense to Jacqueline, so she ignored it. For the cuts and blisters, the old woman gave her a strange smelling cream to prevent infection and ease the scarring. As payment, Jacqueline offered three golden necklaces, all rarely worn. The Asshai'i woman took two, pushed the third back into Jacqueline's hand before leading her to the door, muttering that Jacqueline should return if she felt the need.

Jacqueline had asked to be left alone but the Tyrells must not have been aware of the request because she received an invitation from Lady Margaery to spend time with the future queen and her grandmother who had just arrived in the capitol from the Reach. Had she not been informed that Sansa Stark would also be in attendance, Jacqueline probably would have declined the invitation, feigning an illness. But she knew she would have to interact with the Tyrell women eventually, especially with the royal wedding on the horizon, and Jacqueline hoped having Sansa along would make things more comfortable.

Ignoring the late summer heat, Jacqueline put on another high collared dress to hide the ring of cuts and bruises on her neck. She left her long black hair down as to distract from the remaining bruises and scratches on her face, which had becoming unnaturally pale with Jacqueline's recent recluse behavior. When the time came, Jacqueline picked up the dark blue skirts and made her way to the garden.

Jacqueline had expected the social gathering to be filled with light, meaningless chatter and lemon cakes. There were lemons cakes, among other foods, and a singer who had to constantly sing louder because the Queen of Thorns was hard of hearing. And at first the conversation did linger on light topics: the differences between fashion in the Reach and King's Landing, food, sewing, even the weather. But after a while the discussion turned to heavier subjects as the singer's voice all but drowned them out.

When Lady Olenna asked about Joffrey's temperament, Sansa's smile faded. Jacqueline instantly became suspicious at the change in topic. If Cersei or one of her spying handmaidens overhead this conversation, they would all be in trouble. But the near-screaming singer made it difficult for them to hear each other and Jacqueline doubted anyone standing at a distance could eavesdrop.

The three other women found themselves leaning forward in their seats to hear Sansa's grievances against her former betrothed. She talked about the day Jacqueline had returned from the Stark camp. She also mentioned that Joffrey had forced her to look at the spiked head of her father after his execution. Jacqueline wasn't sure what the Tyrells wanted with this information. Would they run straight to Cersei with it? Or was Margaery already looking for a reason to end her own betrothal? Surely this wasn't just meant to be a trust-building conversation, a simple conversation between women about the crimes of men.

Sansa was near tears when she finished speaking. "And you, Lady Jacqueline?" Olenna asked after a quiet moment.

Having already gone through the emotional turmoil of disclosing her abuse to Tywin and having no desire to appear weak in front of strangers, Jacqueline shrugged her shoulders and leaned back in her chair with a wine glass in her hand. "Joffrey had one of his kingsguard attempt to hang me from the battlements during the Battle of the Blackwater. Didn't Ser Garlan tell you? He's the one who pulled me to safety."

"Yes, he did. Anything else?" Margaery said, with a frown, perhaps disapproving of her future husband's actions.

"I haven't been around much since King Robert died." Jacqueline whispered, not caring if anyone heard her over the singing before taking a drink of her wine.

The future queen leaned across the space between them and took hold of Jacqueline's free hand. The initial urge to flinch away from the content seemed silly considering how soft Margaery touch was against Jacqueline's own scratched covered hand. "I only knew Renly for short time before his death, but I do know that he loved you deeply. He regarded leaving you behind when he rode for Highgarden." Margaery was staring at Jacqueline with her large brown eyes and Jacqueline wondered if this was what it would be like to be comforted by a mother. It took her a moment to remember that Margaery was younger than her.

"When I am queen, I will not allow any harm to befall," Margaery said strongly, squeezing Jacqueline's hand slightly. She turned to Sansa, "Either of you." The words were nice and Margaery sounded sincere. But she wasn't queen yet. Until then, everything was hollow.

In the days following, Jacqueline found herself in the garden more than usual. The Red Keep was easier to navigate knowing which persons to avoid. The Lannisters were never really garden people, except for perhaps Myrcella but she was currently in Dorne. Instead, the gardens' most frequent visitors nowadays seemed to be the Tyrells and other members of their household. Even with the Tyrells, it was easy to be alone among the expansive maze of flowers. Jacqueline often wondered to the quietest part of the garden, which happened to be the bench in front of the entrance to the godswood, which people rarely visited. Even after Margaery's kind words, Jacqueline did not consider the Tyrells' friends or even allies. Noncombatants maybe, but Jacqueline was too old for friends and she had no allies, not within King's Landing at least.

Sansa had befriend the Tyrell girl though and Jacqueline often saw them walking together, both inside the castle and outside in the garden. Sansa needed that, Jacqueline supposed. She was still technically a prisoner of the Lannisters, but the ability to form friendships outside of that context was important for someone Sansa's age. And if one was going to befriend a person, the future queen would be a good choice.

The war continued but Jacqueline mostly ignored it. Stannis and Rob were still alive; Rob had stuck to the Riverlands and Stannis had returned to Dragonstone to rebuild his army after the Battle of the Blackwater. There was word that Balon Greyjoy had declared himself king of the Iron Islands again and had set about attacking the North to expand his territory. Jacqueline wondered what Theon thought about that, considering his relationship to the Starks. Four kings now, all fighting for control. It was ridiculous to Jacqueline, the chaos Robert's death had caused.

Then one day, with nearly no notice, Sansa was married to Tyrion Lannister. Despite the suddenness of it, Jacqueline felt there were worse men Sansa could be forced to marry. The marriage was clearly a result of Lord Tywin's doing, because Cersei would sooner marry Sansa to Moon Boy than her own family. Then again, the rumor was that Margaery had promised Sansa that she could marry her older brother, Willas, who was the heir to Highgarden, so maybe Sansa had ended up in a worse possible marriage. At the same time, with Jaime Lannister being a member of the kingsguard, Tyrion was the rightful heir to Casterly Rock. Love and romance may not be possible in her marriage, but financial comfort was. Jacqueline could not hope for either. Still, Jacqueline wasn't sure she would trade places with Sansa.

*Author's Note*

Mandatory apology for the wait. Finals happened and then I spent the summer studying in Europe and now I'm back at law school. Short chapter to move the story along as we approach the royal wedding. Oberyn Martell will make his debut next chapter, whenever I manage to write it.

Thanks for reading and hanging with me. xoxo