Daenerys' day had, like everyone else's in the court, started black, risen to red, and descended back to black again. "Gods above," Sansa breathed as they looked out over the city. "The siege didn't do this much damage," she said.

"The siege didn't make it inside the walls," Daenerys reminded her. But even if it had, would it have done this? Flea Bottom had been a stinking morass of people and buildings, now it was a charred mass of masonry and meat. The stench reached out to the Red Keep. She wondered whether the Baratheons would be able to smell it on Dragonstone. Anyone looking over the city from the keep would feel their gaze drawn to it for the coming months.

"What do you think happened to the people?"

"Hopefully most of them got out," Dany replied softly. In truth she wasn't hopeful. The confines of Flea Bottom were packed and crowded and such a press of people in one place made moving hard and running harder. "At the very least the fire didn't spread." They had watched from the balcony as the gold cloaks and soldiers had demolished buildings surrounding flea bottom, leaving a path of rubble that the fires were unable to cross easily. Those flames that did jump the gap were dealt with by teams of gold cloaks with barrels and buckets.

"Yes, I'm sure the fire not spreading is the highest concern of those whose homes are now gone."

"A lot of people's homes are gone from this war, Sansa," Dany pointed out. She glanced over at Sansa who was giving her a withering look. "Sorry, that was unbecoming."

"Yes, it was," Sansa replied. She nudged Daenerys and nodded to one side.

Daenerys looked and saw the prince and princess standing against the stone railings, looking out over the city. "They shouldn't be seeing this," Sansa said.

"I agree," Daenerys replied, and the two hurried over.

"Tommen, we should go," Myrcella said quietly, trying to tug on Tommen's arm, but the boy seemed transfixed by the sight beyond the keep.

"No, I want to see," Tommen insisted.

Myrcella glanced around and saw Sansa and Daenerys approaching. Immediately she stood taller and relaxed her expression. "Lady Sansa, Lady Daenerys, can I help you?"

"Yes, princess," Daenerys replied, "Sansa here was just feeling a little light headed after looking over the city, you don't happen to know anywhere nearby that we could rest, do you?"

"I- yes, yes I do, Tommen," she forced Tommen to look at her. "Come with us, Lady Sansa needs to find somewhere to rest."

"She doesn't need us for that."

"Prince Tommen, a good man is always ready to help a lady when they need it."

"Joffrey wouldn't help, and he's the king," Tommen said.

Daenerys leant in close so no one outside the group could hear them. "And do you think that Joffrey is a good man?"

"I-" Tommen glanced around, suddenly cautious.

"I don't," Daenerys said simply. "But I think you are, aren't you."

"I try to be," Tommen replied.

Daenerys stood back up with a smile. "Then why don't you take Sansa's arm as we go and find somewhere for her to rest."

Tommen took Sansa's arm and led her away. Myrcella and Daenerys fell behind a few steps and Myrcella whispered, "is Sansa really feeling unwell?"

Daenerys looked down with a raised eyebrow. "What do you think?"

Myrcella looked at Sansa for a few seconds. "I think someone who lost their hand wouldn't feel so ill from seeing Flea Bottom on fire."

Daenerys nodded. "I think you are right, princess."

"Thank you, then, for helping me with him."

"Whenever you need, my princess." Daenerys took Myrcella's army softly and guided her onwards.

"Do you mean that?"

Daenerys thought back o the last time she had helped Tommen and Myrcella, to their happiness, the neglect they were going through. And Lord Loren had asked her to watch out for them. "Yes I think I do," she said.


"Do you really have to go?" Sansa asked as Daenerys pulled on her black night clothes.

Dany pulled her hood up. "Yes, I do."

"Tonight?"

"What better time?" Dany asked. Sansa still looked worried, so Daenerys leant over and stroked her arm. "Sansa, even if we got out into the city by the way I know, we don't know our way through it, but if there is a path that leads from here down to Flea Bottom, well what was Flea Bottom, we'll have a direct path to the gates. I have to see if there is a way."

Sansa sighed. "Just be careful, won't you."

Daenerys grinned. "Aren't I always."

Even though it had been weeks and months since she had last entered the tunnels, coming back was like returning to a favourite garden. She remembered much when she climbed down the ladder, and more with every step she took. She knew where to go down or up, which paths led to dead ends and those that led to paths of no current use to her. All that was absent was the knife. That lay in its scabbard at the base of the entrance hole. She couldn't take that up again. Not yet.

Although it was her goal. Daenerys first made her way to the midden entrance she had used to meet with Gerold in the sept. From there she made a note of the Red Keep and the direction towards Flea Bottom and returned to the tunnels. Keeping the direction in mind, she started down a path she hadn't explored before. She followed it on for some time, memorizing the forks she took and where they led. One led her into a dark alley, another into the basement of what sounded like a tavern, and in a third she turned back after the path took her downwards until she heard the sound of running water.

That was enough, for one evening. She had made some progress and she would try again tomorrow. Easily retracing her steps back through the passages and up to her and Sansa's rooms again. She paused at the base of the ladder. Her feet were treading on something soft that hadn't been there before. She reached down and touched it. It was something silken. She put it close to her eye and saw that it was her nightgown. But why was it down here? She slowly scaled the ladder and tried pushing on the door but nothing happened. She tried peering around the gaps in the stone, but couldn't see, something was covering it. The rug maybe? She pressed her ear to the stone and could hear muffled voices. Sansa was talking to someone. The voices didn't seem raised, but she couldn't take Sansa's safety for granted. Half of her wanted to slide her dagger in the gaps between the stones and cut through the carpet to come up quickly. But that was foolish. She may be a killer, but she was no knight. What if it was one of the Kingsguard. No, if Sansa tossed the nightgown down the passage, then it was clear what she wanted her to do. She went back down the ladder and, as quickly as she could in the dark, changed into her nightgown, leaving the black clothes and dagger at the base of the tunnel. She hurried to an exit she knew well and straightened her gown, before walking briskly, but not hurriedly, back to her rooms.

There were no guards on her door. That was a good sign, she took a breath and raised her hand to knock, then stopped herself, why should she knock to enter her own rooms. Instead she just turned the handle and entered.

"Daenerys, you're back," Sansa said once Daenerys had half stepped through the door. "Did you have a good walk?"

Daenerys quickly took in the room. Sansa, Myrcella and Tommen were all sitting on the bed, all looking at her. "Yes, I did thank you Sansa," Daenerys replied.

"Why were you walking at this hour?" Myrcella asked.

"I just needed to clear my head," Daenerys replied. She wouldn't be too specific, in case Sansa had said something she would disprove. "I think perhaps the more pertinent question is what are you two doing here at this hour?"

Myrcella shrugged. "We couldn't sleep, so we came to see you."

"I see," Dany replied sitting down on the bed. "Will you not be missed?"

"By who?" Myrcella asked.

"Those who put you to bed?"

Tommen shook his head. "Myrcella puts me to bed now."

"And I put myself to bed."

"I see," Dany replied.

"It won't be a problem, will it Daenerys?" Sansa said sweetly.

"No, I can't think that it will."

So the four of them talked, joked and laughed. Sansa talked Myrcella through some finer details of upper lady courtship, and Daenerys told Tommen stories of the east.

"And it was the strangest dancing I have ever seen." She said, explaining the Uncloaking ceremony in Braavos.

"Like this?" Tommen asked and broke into a bewildering series of spasms, twists and turns before ending by falling flat on his face.

Daenerys laughed. "No not like that," she said, helping him to his feet again. He seemed unphased. "They didn't fall on their faces, and they were wearing masks." But other than that he hadn't been far off.

A sonoros tolling sang through the castle, making Daenerys' heart leap. "The sequester bell!" She looked out the window. The stroke of midnight had fallen, and movement throughout the keep was now forbidden.

"Why so worried, Lady Daenerys?" Myrcella asked, surprisingly calm.

"Because you should be your rooms. If you're fno we'll all be in trouble."

"Found by who?" Myrcella asked innocently. "The servants who wake us up in the morning?"

"Yes. If they come to wake you up and you aren't there, surely they'll raise the alarm. The queen has only just been recovered. Your mother might have a fit if you went missing just afterwards."

Tommen made to speak, but Myrcella pressed a finger to his lips, eyebrows raised. Tommen nodded and stayed silent. "It would be fun though."

"Fun?" Sansa asked.

"Yes, we haven't played hide from our mother in years," Tommen piped up now his lips were free.

That may be the case, Daenerys noted. But she didn't want the court to have any excuse to take out their anger on Dany and Sansa. The atmosphere was always tense. The fact that Margaery had been bundled straight inside and the court was immediately sequestered without celebration did not suggest that the court was in the mood for levity.

"Princess Myrcella, this is serious. If your mother thinks that Sansa and I-"

Myrcella and Tommen burst out laughing.

"This is serious!" Daenerys insisted.

"I'm sorry Daenerys," Myrcella said, wiping a tear away from her eye. "You just looked so serious."

"This is serious!"

"It's alright, my lady," Tommen said. "We've already told the servants who wake us up that we might be here. They won't tell our mother."

"You're going to be here?" Sansa asked.

Myrcella nodded to the door. "They've just sequestered the keep. We'll have to be."

"Please Daenerys," Tommen said, looking up at her with wide eyes. "Can we stay?"

Daenerys glanced up at Sansa who smiled, eyebrows raised.

Daenerys sighed. "You promise you really have told your servants?"

"We promise," they said together.

"Alright, just for tonight," she said, nodding over at the bed.

The four of them got into the bed. It was a tight fit, with Dany and Sansa on the outside, Tommen and Myrcella in the middle, but they made it. Dany pinched out the candles and slipped under the sheet beside Tommen.

"Goodnight everyone," Myrcella whispered from Tommen's other side.

"Goodnight," Dany replied, laying back against the pillows and closing her eyes. She felt Tommen and tentatively lay against her arm. Dany wanted to pull away, but he was just a boy, a little boy, not his brother, or his father. So she carefully lifted her arm and allowed him to tuck against her torso. He got as close as he could, pressing tightly against her and clutching at her nightdress. Was he looking for a replacement mother? If so, she shouldn't do this. But it was just for this night, in the end, so she let him stay close to her tonight.