King's Landing 298 AC.
Shiera.
Seeing her family back on the throne was a strange experience for her, or would have been if her nephew actually sat the throne, though she'd not begrudge him waiting. She knew his reasons and was also having her own issues settling back into life at King's Landing. That she saw ghosts everywhere she walked not helping her shake off the sadness that she felt at those she had left behind so many years earlier.
Watching her nephew spar was like seeing Daemon or Aegor, Daeron, or even Brynden himself, especially when Jaehaerys wielded Dark Sister. On one or two occasions she'd even seen him wield Blackfyre and that too brought up feelings she'd care not to have. When he had told her what he wished to do with the mummer, a part of her had thought of Brynden and the Weeping Ridge. Another Blackfyre falling to House Targaryen and only that this one deserved it far more than Daemon did, she may have raised an objection.
That he wished it to be them all who'd see it done was something she welcomed though, they were a family, the last remaining scions of House Targaryen and they needed to end him together. Her nephew radiated a power she'd not seen before, not in her, Brynden, or even in the warlocks and sorcerers of Asshai. That his heart was as good as it was made her grateful it was he who wielded it. Shiera knowing all too well what could happen with power if one's heart wasn't pure.
Had she needed any evidence that he was the right person to be so gifted then his happiness at seeing her and Dany, how he was with Tyrion and what he'd done with Dragonstone would have been enough. Yet it was what he'd just done with Aemon Targaryen that she was thinking on as they flew to King's Landing. There were five Dragonriders in the sky for the first time since the dance and her family was reunited and stronger in magic than they had ever been. When he had come to her and told her what he believed, shown her the pendant and the books she knew it would work and so she backed him completely, even when Dany and Tyrion did not.
"I tell you all this will work, the blood of the dragon." Jae said.
"You're trying to say that Aemon can be made young again, Jae, that's just madness." Dany said.
"Is it, then explain our aunt, Dany? It's magic not madness and we live now in a world that's full of it."
"But this, surely not?" Tyrion said.
"Aunt?" Jae said looking to her.
"Our nephew is right, there are few limits to what magic can do, I'm proof of that. The dragons themselves are the very epitome of it. I've read the books, though the pendant Jae has is much different than others I've seen, it will work I believe."
"And what, be a glamour? Allow our uncle to look younger while he is anything but? "Dany said, Shiera noticing that her niece seemed more worried about her aged uncle than doubtful this would work.
"It's not a glamour Dany, as long as he wears this he'll not be ravaged by time. It'll be as if he's young again." Jae said.
"Immortality, your speaking of immortality?" Tyrion said incredulously.
"No, that's not quite what it does." she said softly.
She had seen the stunned looks on all the faces other than hers and Jaehaerys's when it had worked. Even Aemon being taken aback by the image he now presented. To tell the truth so was she, though for much different reasons. Aemon looked so much like him, other than his eyes and lack of a birthmark then she'd have said she was looking at Brynden reborn. As they circled the Dragonpit she resolved to get to know Aemon once more, the last thing the realm needed was another Bloodraven she thought to herself bitterly.
The ride to the Red Keep was odd, five Targaryen's, three bearing the Valyrian features and looking she'd have no doubt, like so many of the Kings, Queens and Princess of the past. Yet each of them as different from any of them as could be. Shiera had never truly been a princess, Dany had spent so long far away not being one that she was finding it hard to be one too and Aemon had turned down a crown rather than be a king. He'd taken a chain rather than be a prince and she wondered if he'd be comfortable being one now. As for her two nephews, Tyrion was learning what it was like to be a Prince of the Blood, and Jaehaerys trying his best to be a king. She smiled when they reached the Red Keep, this was not the group most would choose to usher in a new age and perhaps truly the only one who could.
"I'll have a room organized for you uncle, perhaps tonight we can eat as a family, I'd like you all to meet my wife." Jae said.
"I thought the marriage hadn't taken place yet, your grace?" Aemon said and she saw her nephew frown just a little.
"Please uncle, call me Jae, we're family."
"Of course Jae." Aemon said.
"Margaery and I married under the Old God's uncle, a number of years ago." Jae said and she heard Tyrion chuckle.
"Our nephew fancies himself another Conciliator, uncle, and Margaery another Alysanne." Tyrion said to a laugh from Dany and Aemon.
"Or I was being impulsive and wished something that belonged only to us." Jaehaerys said and Aemon slapped him on the back.
"As was your right to do so, nephew. I look forward to meeting my goodniece." Aemon said smiling.
"I do too." Dany said also with a big smile on her face and Shiera saw how Jaehaerys immediately relaxed.
They placed Aemon in a room a few doors down from her own, Jae wishing family to be together and having insisted they kept one room empty for him. She bid them goodbye for now and went to her own, eager to rest and read, and yet she got to do neither, as no sooner had she sat down than there was a knock on her door. She was unsurprised to see it was Aemon and she welcomed him inside, his eyes looking her over so intently that she must have looked annoyed or nervous.
"Forgive me Shiera, I find it hard not to stare, at you, our kin, even the walls of this place. I long to let my eyes roam and take in everything I can, while I can." Aemon said and she only then remembered he had been blind for many years.
"How long?" she asked.
"Eight and Ten, Nine and Ten, I'm not certain when it was that it left completely. I'd been seeing less and less for years and one day I awoke and it was to darkness. I never dreamed I'd see once more, that I'd feel no aches and pains, but then I never dreamed I'd fly a dragon and feel this, this bond inside. I feel complete Shiera, in a way I'd not felt ever before." Aemon said.
She knew what he was speaking of and had felt it from the moment she'd held Rhaegal in her arms, she knew the dragon felt it as well. They were never meant to be Riderless and though she'd cursed the things her kin had done to try and bring them back into this world, she knew now the reason the desire to do so was so very strong.
"I imagine you have questions?" she asked looking to the young man who stood in front of her, the man who every so often ran his fingers through his hair as if he was touching silk.
"Just one." Aemon answered.
"For me, it's been almost ninety years." she said touching the ruby as he gasped.
"And you feel as I do, as if you were young once more?"
"I've never felt any different, Aemon." she said.
The truth was she had not, from the moment she'd found it and realized it's power to now she'd felt no different. Though she had never aged, never felt the ravages of time and so had nothing to compare it to she realized after a few moments.
"You should ask Jae to show you the book, Daenys's Journal. The passage on the pendant is clear, it explains it far better than I can."
"He retrieved it?" Aemon said happily.
"He did, he'll need our guidance Aemon, magic is a tempting mistress, more tempting than even I was in my youth."
"Brynden?" Aemon said and she nodded sadly.
"Lost himself to it, I'll not see our nephew do the same."
"Nor will I." Aemon said determinedly.
King's Landing 298 AC.
Ned.
He arranged the meal as quickly as he could, they'd soon be having a much larger family meal as Arya was due to arrive in a day or two, Wynafred and Wylla even earlier and he knew how much Robb wished to see his betrothed once more. As for himself, Elle would arrive by the end of the week and he felt his own eagerness to be reunited with his wife too. That the war had ended as quickly as it did was something he was most grateful for. He'd missed out on the birth of one of his children because of a war, he'd promised himself he'd not miss out on another.
When it came to the meal itself though he found he was nervous, he wondered how Cregan would take the offer. Would it seem like a poor substitute for what the boy truly deserved, what he was entitled to? True, he'd told them all repeatedly that he didn't wish to push his claim and had no interest in taking Winterfell and the North, but it was still his by right. Ned knew despite how he felt about Wynafred, Robb would give up his claim if it was asked of him, but it had never been and Cregan had seemed horrified by even the prospect of taking over as Lord of the North. Would Lord of Sea Dragon Point feel like a let down compared to that? He didn't know and could only hope he was making the right decision.
"Relax father, he'll either wish it and see it in the manner in which it's been offered or he'll wish no part of it." Robb said and Ned chuckled.
"When did my son get so wise?" he asked with his smirk still on his face.
"When my father allowed me to go to White Harbor." Robb replied.
Hearing the knock on the door, Ned answered it himself to find Cregan standing there, his nephew looking more and more like Brandon each day.
"Come in nephew, Dusk not with you?" Ned asked.
"No uncle, he, Ghost, Fang, and Grey Wind are with Lya in the Kingswood. It seems the pack wished to hunt and his grace had them escorted to the gates." Cregan said as he stepped into the room.
He smiled at that, the wolves were running free, only Nymeria, Summer, and Frost missing from the pack now and one of those soon to be here. Taking a seat they ate, the meal was simple enough and unlike the meals Jaehaerys had told him he'd been forced to endure, far less formal. They spoke on Ashara's arrival the day before and of Arya's soon to come. Cregan looking forward to seeing his cousin as much as Ned was to having his daughter close to him once more.
"Your mother, she's settling in well?" he asked.
"She is uncle, she and Lord Gerion are spending a quiet night together." Cregan said.
"Father." Robb said and he nodded.
"Cregan I do have an ulterior motive for asking you to join us for dinner, not that I don't welcome your company but I'd like to speak to you on the future, on your future." he said and heard the boy sigh.
"I told you both, I don't want it." Cregan said.
"Aye, I know that lad, but things are about to change no matter what we want. Your mother will no longer need to hide who she is very soon. I'm sure my nephew will be eager for her to be herself once more, as no doubt Lady Ashara wishes as well. I've asked him to hold off so we could speak, so I could present this offer to you. Aye, I know you don't wish Winterfell." he said raising his hand when Cregan went to interrupt.
"Cregan what my father is trying to say, badly." Robb said to a chuckle from Cregan "Is we'd like to name you as Lord of Sea Dragon Point. Jon has offered to help fund a keep and we need a loyal and good man there, we'd ask you to be Admiral of the North's Western Fleet, to help protect the trading routes. You'd be head of your own house, a Lordly house." Robb said.
Ned saw Cregan look at them both, a look of shock and surprise on his face as he contemplated the offer, though he hadn't turned it down outright which Ned was grateful for.
"I don't know what to say." Cregan said looking at them both "This wouldn't cause an issue, your bannermen wouldn't see this as a chance to use me?"
"His grace said you can if you wish to, form a new house, a cadet branch of House Stark. If you did then it would be no different than House Karstark. In terms of issues with our bannermen, this actually would solve so very many, they'd see Brandon's son be treated as he should, be respected and welcomed into the North." Ned said.
"It would give us a chance to get to know each other better cousin, Winterfell is less than a week from where your keep would be and Bear island even less." Robb added.
"I don't know what to say." Cregan said and Ned saw the boy was still a little stunned.
"You don't need to say anything tonight, Cregan, think on it, speak to your mother. If you accept then when we go back North you could come with us. You could visit Winterfell and see the lands for yourself, even help with the work on the keep's design and placement" Ned said and Cregan nodded.
"I thank you for the offer, uncle, it's most generous. I need time to think, to get it right in my head, this is so unexpected, I'd not…I'd never."
"That's quite alright nephew, as I said think on it and let me know."
When Cregan left that night he felt that he may very well have done something right for once. He hoped he accepted both because he'd like to have his nephew close and he had no other idea how to appease people about the truth of Brandon's son. That he didn't know for so long would be understandable, that once he did he kept it to himself, even if it was for the right reasons may not. However were it to be revealed with a plan in place, it would be a much easier sell to his bannermen.
"I think he'll accept it father." Robb said.
"I hope so son."
It took him two days and Arya's arrival to do so. Cregan coming to him with his mother to say he was most grateful and that yes he'd be Lord of Sea Dragon Point if the offer was still open. As for Arya herself, gods it was like looking at Lyanna reborn, more so given the stories he'd heard about the attacks by the Iron Born and what she had done to Theon Greyjoy. Ned had needed to hold back Robb when he saw his former friend. If there had ever been a doubt about Lyanna being kidnapped and held against her will. If he'd ever thought she'd truly been raped, then what Arya had done would prove that impossible.
"You are sure you're unhurt?" he said to her as they walked down the halls to the royal apartments.
"Of course I am, Nymeria warned me father and I used my knife." Arya said and he stopped and hugged her once more, glad to feel her hug him back.
"My wild she-wolf." he said feeling and then seeing her smile "I'm so very proud of you Arya, so very proud."
They were brought into the rooms and found Jaeharys waiting for them, for once his nephew was alone and he saw how much that pleased Arya. It was rare to find him that way these days, his nephew spending as much time as he could with his wife, his family, or with Lord Gerion's daughter Joy since she'd arrived.
"Jon." Arya shouted and he moved to correct her but never got the chance to.
"Little wolf." Jaehaerys said as he swung her in the air, Arya's laughter and calling a king stupid, making Ned shake his head and grin warmly.
King's Landing 298 AC.
Jaime.
His fingers moved softly over her swollen belly, Dacey was asleep as he just looked at her and took her in before she woke. It was something he had spent most of the night doing, just staring at her, taking her in, and being happy that she was finally back in his arms. Seeing her and Joanna was such a relief, such a boon to his spirit that he wondered how he'd managed to spend so much time apart from them. Only to find it actually wasn't that much, all in all, he'd been apart for them for less than six moons. That's how long it had taken to win a throne and settle into his new life, a life they'd be a part of now.
He'd had the Tower of the Hand almost completely redone. The rooms laid out far better and he had it furnished it better. He'd filled it with books, toys for Joanna, and training equipment for his wife as he knew she'd wish to spar once she could. Jaime hadn't spared any coin making it as comfortable as it possibly could be for his family, his soon-to-be growing family he thought with a smile. He laughed when he felt the slap on his head, turning to see Dacey looking down at him.
"Don't you have somewhere you need to be?" his wife said rolling her eyes at him.
"No, here is where I want to be." he said petulantly.
"Jaime, you have arrangements to make, a king to crown, remember."
"I don't want to meet with the fat man, gods, the man drones on and on and on. His little barbed comments about whether his grace is truly faithful or how important the faith is, irks me so"
"Jaime." she said doing her best to be reproachful.
"The faith is the pillar of our society Lord Hand, we must ensure that the crown and the faith are as one." he said making her laugh as he did what he thought was a passable mummery of the man.
"Yet it is up to the Lord Hand to see the arrangements are done." Dacey said.
"Let Olenna handle it." he said moving up beside her, snuggling close.
"We'd better not, the faith already thinks Jae is a heathen. What will they think if his goodgrandmother murders the High Septon?" she said and he burst out laughing.
This, this was what he needed, his wife to give him a kick up his arse when he didn't wish to face the day. Joanna to make him smile when she played with her toys as he looked over dull paperwork. That when he looked down at his wife's swollen belly, the thoughts of a new babe would brighten even the darkest days when work bore down on him.
"Fine, I'll do some of this work thing, then." he said kissing her as he got up from the bed.
After dressing and looking in on Joanna who was still asleep, he made his way to his office and looked over his day's work. Papers to sign, meetings to be held, and only one that he actually looked forward to. Still, he did as much as he could before the fat man arrived and then struggled through that meeting. Reassuring him and telling him that the future queen would no doubt be seeking him out very soon in relation to the wedding. The issues over the coronation itself weren't that difficult to resolve. The High Septon more wishing to see that Jaime cared about the faith or that the queen did, rather than to moan too much about Jae's own lack of caring.
Once he had gone, Jaime did some more work before stopping for lunch with Dacey and Joanna, finding Dacey's family and Tyrion joining them which he appreciated. He was missing working with his brother and while Tyrion helped out when he could, Jaime knew he was only killing time until he could travel to Dorne. He knew his brother had hoped Arianne would come to swear fealty. But with Oberyn already there it was not to be and it would be Tyrion going to Dorne before the wedding that would be the first time he'd get to chance to meet up with her, rather than earlier as he wished.
"You're going to the small council meeting?" Tyrion asked as they walked down the halls.
"Aye, what of you?"
"Meeting with Dany and Aemon." Tyrion said smiling.
"It's good, with you and them?" he asked
"Aye, strange but good, Dany and I are, the trip to the Wall brought us even closer. As for Aemon, I've never known a man with so much knowledge, I could sit listening to him discuss books for days." Tyrion said.
"Have you spoken to Gerion?"
"Aye, he's much better, brother, having Joy here, Ashara too." Tyrion said a note of longing in his voice that made it clear who he was thinking of.
"When are you heading to Dorne?" he asked with a smirk.
"I'm not…after the coronation." Tyrion said when he caught him looking at him "I wish her to come to the wedding and Jae suggested perhaps a dragon ride would make it easier." Tyrion said and Jaime nodded.
"I wish you good fortune, brother." he said.
Turning from Tyrion he made his way up the stairs and then into the small council rooms to find he was the last to arrive. Jae, Margaery, Olenna, and Ser Richard along with Barristan and Oberyn who seemed in a much happier mood since Ellaria arrived, already there waiting.
"Really Lord Hand, this is most tardy of you." Jae said with a smile.
"Forgive me, your grace, but I was only following your lead." he said watching as Olenna rolled her eyes. Jaime having said the very same thing to Jae the day before when he'd been so preoccupied with spending time with Joy that he'd kept them all waiting.
"Well, please ensure it doesn't happen again Lord Hand, tardiness is apparently a serious thing." Jae said as he took his seat.
"Indeed it is your grace, I promise to try harder in the future, just as your grace promised yesterday." he said to laughs.
He took his seat and looked to see the notes in front of Jae. So far they'd discussed minor things, some small appointments, and the realm in general, today it seemed to be far more serious if his king was bringing notes. Though he had expected the closer they got to the coronation that to be the case, he found himself excited to see what plans they were about to discuss.
"Before we get started, I've drawn up some thoughts, some appointments, changes, some other things I wish to speak on, and I'd like in this room for us to speak freely. Here we can dispense with titles and formalities once we begin. I'll not have us sitting around worrying about them when we should be worrying about the plans or decisions we make instead." Jae said and Jaime saw Oberyn nod.
"Aye, nephew, let's not waste time." Oberyn said and Jaime wondered if it was the formalities being dispensed with or the fact his paramour was here that made Oberyn so readily agree.
"Firstly, Ser Richard, the state of the realm if you please." Jae said.
"The North, West, and Reach are completely secure and behind you, Jae. The Riverlands are while not in disarray, disunited and wondering where they go from here, the loyal houses who supported you wonder how you'll handle those who supported House Tully. The Stormlords are concerned that you may strip House Baratheon of it's rights and Dorne worries about the loss of so many lords and knights. As for the Vale and the Iron islands."
"You're skipping over the Crownlands?" Olenna asked.
"Are remarkably unaffected, my lady." Ser Richard said "In the Iron Islands the Kingsmoot has yet to take place, Jae, while the Vale still awaits your moves."
"Lord Royce?" Jae asked.
"Is on route." Ser Richard said.
"Very well. The Reach, West, Dorne, and North require no input from the crown other than to reward those who fought for me." Jae said "Something we can do over the next few days and I believe in the case of the Reach and Dorne has already been done?"
"It has Jae." Jaime said.
"As for the West, I'll discuss it with Lord Jaime in private as I will the North with my uncle. The Vale, any thoughts?"
"Who is next in line to House Arryn?" Olenna asked.
"House Arryn will end Olenna, they'll never rule the Vale again." Jae said.
"What of Harrold Hardyng, Jae?" Ser Richard asked.
"I'll not have an Arryn as my Warden of the East and as liege of one of my kingdoms, not even one so far removed from the line." Jae said.
"House Royce?" he asked and Jae looked at him.
"Lord Yohn is a good man, he didn't bring his arms to bear against my uncle, but I need to meet him and take his measure first. House Grafton were always leal men to my family and if not Royce then I'll name them, unless there are objections?" Jae asked looking around.
"You'll leave Ser Harrold as Lord of the Eyrie?" Margaery asked.
"Aye, you were right about that." Jae said with a nod "The Stormlands I intend to name my cousin as Lord Paramount, Renly still hasn't recovered and from Ser Richard's information is a bad choice."
"So you'll name a girl?" Olenna asked.
"I will Olenna, we'll appoint a regent but Shireen is the best choice, both my aunts speak highly of the girl and she's trueborn." Jae said.
"Ser Davos, Jae, he's the best choice for regent." Ser Richard said and Jae nodded.
"The Iron Islands, need to be brought to heel but I wish to speak to Asha Greyjoy first." Jae said next.
"You intend to name a woman Lord Reaper?" Oberyn said smirking.
"Ser Richard tells me Asha is a different sort and she'll maybe be a good choice, I need to see her reactions to her brother's fate first." Jae said.
"You'll take his head?" Olenna asked.
"After what he tried to do to Arya, had she not already taken his manhood then I'd take that first." Jae said angrily and Jaime watched as Margaery reached over to stroke his arm and how quickly it relaxed him, he tried not to smirk as he knew he was just the same.
"Euron and Victarion may be a problem, Jae, Euron especially. He's been calling himself King of the Stepstones and the Narrow Sea." Ser Richard said.
"Then he'll be in for a big surprise, we don't have room in Westeros for more than one king." Jae said to a nod from Olenna.
"The Riverlands, Jae?" he asked.
"House Blackwood, Jaime."
He saw the looks around the table, Olenna and Oberyn not seeming to agree, and Margaery looking as if she very much did. Given his own limited knowledge of things, he wasn't sure if it was the best idea. Even he had heard of the Blackwood and Bracken feud, Ser Richard seemed to be deep in thought also.
"House Bracken won't like it Jae." Oberyn said speaking the thoughts they all had.
"No, but my queen has come up with a solution for that." Jae said proudly.
"Margaery?" Olenna asked surprised.
"Marriage grandmother, Lord Tytos's heir to Lord Jonos's daughter. Both sides fought for Jae, House Blackwood even came to House Bracken's aide when they were besieged, they marched together did they not Ser Richard?" Margaery asked.
"They did, but weddings have been tried between them in the past, none could get them to agree, my queen." Richard said.
"Never was the son of that union in line to be a Lord Paramount." Margaery said and even Jaime had to nod at that.
"Does anyone object?" Jae asked and he saw the nods to show that no one did "Good, next we come to the council itself."
As he walked back to his room he found himself happy with his days work, some of the things he and Jae had spoken about years earlier would be soon done. Changes were soon to be made to how the crown was protected and to the makeup of the small council itself. That some of his suggestions had been turned down only made him happier, Jae taking his advice, Oberyn's, Olenna's, and especially Margaery's, and yet mainly it was his own choices that he was following through on.
It was the best of both worlds, a king with a plan, a vision for the future but one who would listen and consider other better ideas. One who was not afraid to admit he was wrong and that others knew better and yet one who also was not going to be pressured into going against what was right or what he thought was best. They'd spoken about not killing Theon Greyjoy near the end of their meeting. Jaime despite his own feelings on the man had actually come to change his mind at the end, his role as Hand trumping his role as a father and husband.
"Would it not be for the best to let Theon live, maybe allow him to take the black?" he asked as the meeting was coming to an end.
"Why?" Margaery asked annoyed at the thoughts of a wannabe rapist going somewhat free, something he agreed with her on but politics sometimes demanded another way.
"We could more easily manage his sister, if he lived." he said
"No, Greyjoy dies and aye, before you ask I do have personal reasons to see him dead, it was my little sister he tried to rape. Even were it not I'd still see him lose his head, any man who seeks to harm a woman that way should know the punishment they face. Losing their manhoods is not enough, the Wall is not enough. Ask any woman and I wager they'd say the same, Jaime.
Yet Greyjoy's crimes are even more than simply that. He was hostage to his father's good behavior and he stole himself away. Not content with that he participated in an attack on those very lands his imprisonment was mainly to guarantee against."
As he entered his rooms and heard his wife laughing with Joanna he felt eager both for the night to come and the morrow, finally, he was beginning to enjoy his work.
King's Landing 298 AC.
Sansa.
The Red Keep was a much different place when you stayed in it rather than just visited and she found she much preferred the former. Though she was still getting used to the extra guards that were around and the four that had been assigned to her by her brother. Jon explaining to her that she needed to be seen with the black and red cloaks of the Royal Guard from now on. That her brother was king was something she was having difficulty getting used to. Not that he had not been so for some time but that he was all but officially now the king, meant she like others faced a period of adjustment.
Protocols, propriety, having to address him a different way in public was hard enough, especially as she was still trying to come to terms with getting used to calling him Jae rather than Jon, and not doing so as well she should. Her brother noticing her struggle had simply told her to call him brother, just as he still referred to her as his Little Sister, and though she tried it was still mostly the names she fell back on.
Tonight though she'd be meeting his family, his other family, and she was nervous about that too. She'd seen Daenerys and Shiera only briefly since she'd arrived and hadn't spoken to them yet. Not out of any hesitation on her part or theirs, but mainly because they'd all been too busy to be formally introduced. Tonight though she and Margaery would be officially introduced to Jae's other' family and she felt her nerves rise up once more. Would they like her and if they did not would it somehow change things between her and Jon? She doubted it would but a small voice at the back of her head wouldn't be quietened.
"Are you ready?" she heard Margaery say and she was glad her friend had come to her to walk to the private dining rooms rather than allow her go alone. She had thought Margaery would go with Jae but instead had been relieved when she found out she would join her instead.
"Aye." she said shakily.
"Don't be nervous." Margaery said looking at her and taking her hand.
"How are you not?" she asked to a grin from Margaery.
"Because I know Jae, he seems happy with having them here, Sansa, do you think he'd be so if they were terrible, horrible people?"
"No." she said relaxing somewhat.
"No." Margaery said smiling.
As they walked Margaery told her more of Willas's appointment, it was something she was so proud of him for and Margaery was too given how she spoke. He deserved a seat on the small council, more so than any to her mind, though she had at first worried that it would mean she'd not see him from now on. Something she had worried about with Margaery as well, the idea of being in Highgarden without them both not one she cared for. Though Jae had told her that she could if she wished to do her fostering here and were that not enough, Margaery had then asked and she'd accepted to be one of her ladies in waiting.
"We're here." Margaery said and she cleared her mind and took a deep breath, walking inside to find Jon standing there with his aunts and uncles.
If she had thought that the brief views of the Targaryen's she'd had may have done them justice, it was clear now she had been so very wrong. They were beautiful, truly beautiful, compared to Jon's aunts she looked like a silly ugly little girl. Their silver hair, Daenerys's violet eyes, Shiera's mismatched ones that were so like Tyrion's though looked so very different on her face. As for Aemon, though Margaery had explained it somewhat it still made no sense, the man in front of her was almost a hundred namedays old and yet looked younger than her father.
"Margaery, Sansa, my aunts Daenerys Stormborn and Shiera Seastar. Aunts my wife Margaery and my little sister Sansa Stark." Jon said smiling as he looked at them all.
"Princess." Margaery said.
"Your grace." Daenerys replied and Sansa looked on as Jon introduced his uncles and as Margaery spoke to them while Jon held her hand and as she then came face to face with the youngest of the two women.
"Jae has told me so much about you, Sansa, it's so good to finally meet the little sister he speaks so highly of." Dany said looking at her with a friendly smile on her face.
"Princess." she said with a curtsy.
"Call me Dany." the princess said and Sansa smiled back as she said her name.
Walking back to her room that night she was floating on air. Dany was unlike anyone she'd ever met other than the Mormonts and Prince Oberyn's daughters. While Shiera was as much of a lady as one could ever be, Dany was both one and not, and soon she found herself and Margaery joining is as they japed at Jon's expense. As for her brother, he practically beamed all night so happy, was he. She watched as he looked on as Margaery enchanted both his aunts and his uncle, as he saw her laughing when Dany spoke of her times in Essos. Each time she caught his eye she could see just how happy he was that they were all getting along so well.
Waking the next morning and breaking her fast, she waited for Willas to arrive for their walk. Though not as pretty as Highgarden and far less pleasant to her nose, she enjoyed the newer views the Red Keep offered. When she heard the knock on her door she opened it to find him standing there, the smile on his face one she returned immediately. Fang had returned from her hunt but Nymeria's arrival had led them back to the Kingswood, Sansa feeling the wolves' own eagerness to spend time with those they cared for.
"My lady, shall we." Willas said as Sansa took his arm and readied to do the same.
Kings Landing 298 AC.
The crowning of a King.
Margaery.
Meeting Jae's family had been far less nerve-wracking than it should have been. She wondered though if that was because she had no doubt of how he felt about her and so she didn't worry or was it that she knew they'd turn out to be people she'd like. She knew how Jae felt, how he was with the other side of his family, and they with him, and even how he was with her own. So meeting them and knowing he cared for them, a part of her suspected they'd turn out to be just the same as the Starks, and despite their obvious physical differences they had.
She looked forward to getting to know them better, though she was a little nervous about Daenerys being named as the Princess of Dragonstone. Not so much about the woman herself, Jae's aunt leaving her in no doubt of her loyalty to him. More it was the idea of what a signal it sent to the realm, that rather than a future heir of theirs, her husband had named his aunt as the holder of the island. Though Jae had explained it to her after her grandmother had raised the issue.
"Our children." he said and she felt a momentary flutter, more at the thoughts of more than one than anything else "Will be well provided for Marge, my family made a mistake with Dragonstone, it should always belong to our house but it should be our house, not the crown prince's."
"I don't understand?"
"House Targaryen and the Crown are intertwined, but this is a bad thing as it means if the crown falls then the house falls also. Most houses don't lose their house after a war Marge, some do but not most. I wish for ours to be the same, House Targaryen of Dragonstone and House Targaryen if King's Landing are to be different, separate but united."
"And our children?" she asked.
"I intend to rebuild Summherhall for our firstborn." Jae said and she looked at him wondering why he'd not said, son.
"Firstborn you hope for more than one?" she said laughing.
"Numerous, many, countless." he said kissing her each time making her laugh and worry a little all the same.
"What if we, if I…"
"Together, Marge, always."
"Always" she said kissing him deeply.
In planning for the wedding her grandmother had told her the importance of birthing heirs, and she also knew how people looked at things. A marriage without heirs was looked upon as a failure by some, more so when that marriage was a royal one. Yet she was nervous, frightened even by the thoughts of birthing a child, she knew Jae was too and yet she was surprised when he agreed with her that they needed to wait. The older one was the more likely to have a successful birthing, Jae's mother was her age and that he worried about her so, was natural. She wanted children, numerous, many, countless she thought with a smile, but she wanted them to be just them together for some time too, something that Jae wished for as much as she did she was glad to realize.
As she sat in the Great Sept she found as she often did, her mind drifting. They'd be married in less than a moon and be together for the rest of their lives from that point on. It was something she wished for more than anything and the thoughts of sharing a bed with her husband were ones which she thought of more often than not. It made her heart race and left her short of breath when she thought of them laying together. Sometimes at night she'd closed her eyes and her fingers would touch her breast and she'd pretend they were Jae's. She'd wonder if he lay in his bed doing the same as she and find that she'd feel herself grow more and more excited at the thoughts he would.
That he wished for it too, she needed no one to tell her, Jae's eyes doing so each time they kissed and he looked into her own. Each day they spent together, each night they lay down beside each other, when hey kissed, touched, held hands, or were just alone together made it harder and harder not to just give in. Yet she feared it too, that it may be uncomfortable, awkward, that she may not please him or him, her. She'd confided this only with her mother, not that her grandmother wouldn't have been able to help but something's she felt her mother was better equipped to offer her advice on.
"You have nothing to fear, sweetling. I've seen how Jaehaerys looks at you, there is no way you could ever displease him and I would say you feel the same about him."
"I do, but I don't...laying together mother, I don't know what I'm supposed to do, what we're supposed to do?"
"As I'm sure neither does he, Margaery. Despite what some may tell you it's better that way, you'll learn together, enjoy together and yes, at times fail to enjoy together. But I've no doubt you'll find my pleasure in your husband's arms and he in yours."
She'd been given a book by her mother on what to expect and the thoughts of doing any of that with Jae made her sweat a little and brought those flutters back. Some days she'd find herself looking at him and wondering if he had a little book of his own. As she sat in the Grand Sept she looked to him standing there in his black and red tunic, her eyes drifting to his tight leather britches, and she felt her heart race once more. A momentary image of tearing them off floating in her mind.
"All rise." the High Septon said and she stood up shakily and did her best to compose herself.
Jaime.
He stood with Dacey and held Joanna's hand, watching on as the High Septon walked to stand in front of Jae, the bowl of oil in his hand as he bid Jae kneel. Jaime felt his breath quicken as he looked to see the Kingsguard stand at the ready, three facing three, swords drawn, their white cloaks as pristine as they had ever been. In a way he was jealous of them, in another life, he'd be standing beside them waiting to welcome the new king. Yet as he felt the fingers grip his hand a little more tightly he knew he wouldn't change where he stood for anyone.
"We have gathered here today in this sacred place, to crown a king. To place upon the head and shoulders of the rightful Lord of the Seven Kingdoms a crown and the responsibility that goes with it. Each of us, every man, woman, and child now falls under his protection, his love, and his governance and we do so willingly here today in the sight of the most devout.
Jaehaerys Targaryen, do you promise to uphold the law?" the High Septon asked
"I do."
"Do you promise to protect the innocent."
"I do."
"To uphold the faith."
"I do."
"With this holy oil, I do anoint you."
Jaime watched on as the hot oil was poured over Jae's head, not a flinch or movement from him as it was done so. He looked on proudly as the pillow carrying the crown was carried forward, the Crown of the Conqueror himself and he heard people gasp when they saw it. The Valyrian steel circlet glistening in the lights that shined through the crystal domed roof of the Great Sept.
"We the people of the Seven Kingdoms do hereby name you, Jaehaerys Targaryen, the Third of your name, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, Protector of the Realm.
We name you King of the Andals, The Rhoynar, and the First Men.
We name you our King from this day until your last." the High Septon said loudly as he placed the crown on Jae's head.
Jaime looked around the room, Margaery was smiling broadly as was surprisingly Ned Stark, not that he shouldn't just that Jaime couldn't remember seeing one so true on the man's face ever before. Jae's sisters, Sansa, Arya, and Joy all wore the same smiles, and that he thought of his cousin as truly as he did his own showed just what kind of a king the realm was lucky enough to be getting. He could see Northmen look on proudly, men of the West just as much and his own family the happiest of them all. Genna smiling and even Kevan doing likewise, while Gerion looked to be on the verge of crying happy tears.
Prince Oberyn and Ellaria stood ready to cheer, their girls beside them and when he looked over to see Tyrion standing with the three Targaryens he felt a momentary pang. It both hurt and made him proud to see him there, to see him look how he did this day. Both he and Aemon were wearing matching outfits, black and red in the same style as Jae's own. Daenerys and Shiera were like looking into the past, their Valyrian features drawing the eye and they too wore matching outfits, both wearing beautiful dresses in their house's colors.
"Arise, King Jaehaerys of House Targaryen." the high Septon said as Jae stood up and turned around to face them "All hail the king, long may he reign."
"Long May he Reign." he cheered as loudly as any and the noise made that day was far louder than when a Stag had been crowned.
Ser Barristan Selmy.
His eyes moved from Arthur to the king and back, from Jaime to the king and back. He felt himself almost choke up as the High Septon said his words, as he proclaimed Jaehaerys the king. Even though he'd been acting as such since they'd taken this city, though he had seen him as such from the moment he'd spoken to Jaime Lannister all those years earlier. To actually see him named as king was a special moment and one he would treasure. As he walked down the steps, Barristan gave Arthur and the others the nod and they raised their swords and created an arc for the king to walk under.
Seeing the smile on Jaehaerys's face as he did so made him almost drop his own sword. His prince's son's face looking back at him and Barristan feeling for the first time in years that all his sins were forgiven. That his king had already done so had always filled him with pride, but now seeing him stroll past them and watching as each of the Kingsguard sheathed their blades and walked to take their position. As the drills he'd had them partake in shone through, it felt even more real.
The cheer he heard when he stepped out onto the steps of the Great Sept was as loud than any he could remember, the crowd chanting for the king as he walked to address them was even louder and then as if by magic, a simple raise of the king's hand and suddenly, there was silence. Barristan looked on eagerly as Jaehaerys faced them all with a small smile on the king's face before he readied to speak.
"Today I've been named your king." Jaehaerys said to loud cheers "An honor, a privilege, and a sacred duty has been bestowed upon me this day. One which I accept with great humility and one I shall do my utmost to be worthy off."
Though he never raised his voice, each time the cheers died off and Jaehaerys began to speak he could hear everything, it was as if the crowd's eagerness to listen to their new king aided their quietness.
"My father, My mother, wished for me to undertake this journey. To regain the throne stolen from my family and at first, that was my goal, to take back that which was stolen from House Targaryen. Over time I've come to realize, like so many of us do, that our parents know what's best for us. That the path they set us on may seem a difficult one but it's one which has your best interests in heart.
I started on this journey to take back a throne, to seek justice for my family, and to fulfill their wishes for me. Along the way, I've found other reasons why I wished for a crown. I've found a people who've not been given a fair shake at life. Who've been denied the chance for a better life not because of what they are, not because they are no good, or have no skills, but because they have no name.
No more I say."
The cheers resounded around the streets of King's Landing, Barristan sure they'd be heard for miles around.
"I promised you I'll work to make your lives better, I swore it on my mother and my father, I swore it on Fire and Blood. Today they named me King of the Seven Kingdoms, but each day I sit that throne I sit it not as their king, not as my family's king, I sit it as your king. We have a long road to travel until I fulfill the promises I make here to you today. But know this, each day I wake, each day I rise, each day I wear this crown, we travel that road together."
"Hail King Jaehaerys."
"Hail to our king."
Arthur Dayne.
The ride to the Red Keep took an age, the crowds all swarming to get a look at the king and Arthur cursing him for riding a horse rather than a carriage. Yet never once did he feel any danger, never once did he find himself reaching for Dawn. Should anyone dare try to harm the king on this day then he felt the crowd would be better Kingsguards than he and his brothers. He'd stood watching as Jae was crowned and felt both relief and sadness.
That they'd made it, done, it, seen her wishes carried out, Rhaegar's will carried out was something he felt such relief for. That they had fallen and not seen what their son had done was something that almost broke his heart. Listening to him as he spoke to the crowd, as the told them of what he intended to do, the truth in his words clear to see, he'd never been as proud as he was right then. He knew that there would be failures amongst the successes to come, that Jae would face pushback from Lords, the Faith, the Citadel, even from allies and friends in trying to make people's lives better. Yet that he wished to do so, had been something he had spoken to him about more than once.
"Aegon the unlikely, Arthur, Aemon told me tales of him years ago when I visited him at Castle Black. Egg was good king he said and he was right, despite what some would say of him. Tywin Lannister repealed most of the laws he put in place regarding the people , aye it won him favor with the Lords, but it served his interests far more than it did the crowns."
"You intend to reinstate those laws?" He asked.
"I intend to expand them." Jae said.
So listening to his words on the Sept of Baelor, hearing the passion in his voice as he said them and how the people reacted, no, it was not these people he'd ever near fear when it came to Jaehaerys. When they finally reached the Red Keep he walked with Barristan while the others headed to the Throne Room. Their destination the Royal Apartments to wait until the others had made it back from the Sept. He could sense as they walked that despite the firmness of his words and the purposeful steps he took, Jaehaerys was nervous too. Given what he was about to do he could certainly forgive that.
He'd not sat the throne since they'd taken it, waiting for this day until he did. Now the time had come and he and Barristan looked on as Jae paced the room waiting to be called. Arthur chuckled when Jae looked to him, knowing that look all too well.
"No your grace, we can't go for a spar." he said and Jae laughed loudly.
"I know, though I wish I could, today, do you think it went well?" He asked and for one of the few times since he'd served him, he saw the boy he truly was, five and ten years old and yet now responsible for millions of people and Seven Kingdoms.
"Very well, your grace, is that not true Ser Barristan?"
"Aye, it is, never before have I seen such a reception, your grace." Barristan said and Arthur saw the brief exhalation of breath from Jae when the Bold spoke.
He heard the knock on the door and walked over to find Tommen standing there, the squire telling them all was ready.
"It's time, your grace." he said and saw Jae nod.
They walked from the room and the steps Jae took were even firmer now, the walk seeming to take no time at all, and then the doors were opened and the king was announced.
"His Grace, King Jaehaerys Targaryen, the Third of his Name, King of the Andals, Rhonynar and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, Protector of the Realm." the herald called out and Jae walked into the room.
Inside the great and the good of the realm looked on, men took a knee and women went into deep curtsies. His brother's surrounded the throne. Two stood facing on each of the steps and he and Barristan took up their own positions either side of the throne itself. Then Jae walked the steps and turned to face the room before finally sitting down.
"Long Live the King." the herald shouted as men rose and women stood straight.
"Long Live the King." the room shouted as one.
Kings Landing 298 AC.
Jaehaerys Targaryen.
The night of his coronation was a huge feast and Jae sat at the high table with Margaery beside him. The Tyrell's, Lannister's, Starks, Oberyn, and finally his own family given pride of place. It was hard not having everyone sit there with them and he looked out as Sansa, Arya, and Joy, at Robb and others who sat at lower tables with regret. But his extended family was so large now that there simply weren't enough seats for everyone and so Jaime and Dacey represented House Lannister, Mace, Alerie, and Olenna represented House Tyrell along with Margaery. Oberyn and Ellaria, his uncle Ned and finally Tyrion, Dany, Shiera, and Aemon filling out the last positions.
He knew there would those in the room who took issue with Ellaria sitting with a king and yet he cared not. His aunt wouldn't be looked down on by anyone in his presence and he could see both how happy it made Oberyn and her own pride in sitting there. As for the meal itself, it was as extravagant as he feared and he was happy when it was done. Sending plates down to each of the tables and making sure everyone was treated as respectfully as possible was a new experience for him. The raising of a glass to acknowledge someone, or making eye contact with as many people as possible too making it more of a chore than a celebration.
"You look so uncomfortable." Margaery said quietly.
"I didn't know dinner could be this much work." he responded through a put upon smile.
"So I take it we won't have as many feasts as Robert had then?" she said covering up her words with a chuckle.
"Gods no, unless, I mean, should we?" he asked and she shook her head.
"No, let's keep it to the ones we must." she said to his relief.
Once the dishes were sent and the meal finished it did at least give him something to smile about. Asking Margaery to dance and being able to do so without anyone thinking there was anything wrong with it being the cause for that. So much so that halfway through the dance he was smiling so broadly and truly that Margaery couldn't help but comment.
"Now you look happy." she said smiling at him.
"More than happy, my love. I was just thinking."
"Of?" she asked.
"Oldtown." he said surprising her and having her look at him in confusion for a moment before she remembered.
"When we couldn't dance." she said leaning into him.
"Aye, one day we'd be able to without anyone ever thinking it was wrong for us to do so." he said as she looked at him.
He felt her lips on his cheek, a soft almost brushing of them as she kissed him. It was then that the music stopped and he knew that despite wishing to dance with her exclusively, he needed to ask others. After dancing with Joy and Sansa and not panicking Arya anymore than she already was by not asking her to dance. Instead giving her a smile and nod which showed her the reason why he didn't ask her. Jae danced with both his aunts, Genna, and finally Ellaria, who only had to wait so long because she and Oberyn would barely move from each other. Once he had danced with her, he then got the chance to dance with Margaery once more, and soon the night winded down.
The next day he woke early, that he wished the trial so soon was a surprise to most but he cared not, he wanted it done. The falcon had lived long enough and he had sworn to himself that his first official act, once he was crowned, would be to see the man dead. Both Jaime and Olenna had asked him to wait but he'd said no, each day the man breathed was an affront to his father's memory, to his mothers, and he'd not wait any longer than he had to.
It was midday when they were finally set up, Jae sitting on the throne while Mace. Jaime and Oberyn sat in judgment. Every single lord they could fit into the throne room was present, Jae even insisting there were some of the largest merchants in the city and some of the local tavern keepers brought in to bear witness to the falcon's fall. When the man himself was brought in, Jae saw the cocky smile on his face, followed the look of disdain he gave him as he sat on the throne, both looks he wished to see wiped before the day had ended.
"Lord Arryn, you are charged with treason, both against his grace and against his family, how do you plead?" Jaime said loudly.
"I never swore an oath to him." Jon Arryn said to gasps, people not best pleased with him being blatantly disrespectful.
"Yet by right of blood and conquest his grace is your king, the crime remains the same, how do you plead?" Jaime asked once more
"I'll receive no fair trial here today, and I've done no wrong." Jon Arryn said looking around.
"You didn't plan with Hoster Tully to see my family deposed from their rightful throne?" Jae said looking at the man.
"I rose to remove a tyrant who demanded the heads of my wards, your grandfather was a mad man."
"Yet that was not the only reason why you rose was it Lord Arryn? How long had you been planning to place Robert Baratheon on the throne? How long did you use the lie that my mother had been kidnapped to aid your plans?"
"Rhaegar Targaryen, kidnapped the Lady Lyanna everyone knows this." Jon Arryn said.
"Ser Arthur Dayne, could you step forward." Jae said.
The room hushed as Arthur stepped forward, Dawn's hilt seen over his shoulder as he stood sideways so he faced the room and the king.
"Ser Arthur, tell the court of my father and mother."
"Rhaegar and Lyanna fell in love your grace, with Elia's consent their marriage was annulled and in front of the old gods and then the new, Prince Rhaegar married Lyanna Stark, making her his wife."
"What proof is there of this?" Mace asked and Jae nodded to Ser Richard Lonmouth who stepped forward..
"Other than Ser Arthur's own words, I have letters here written in Prince Rhaegar's own hand, in Princess Lyanna's and one from Princess Elia. I also have the wedding notices signed by Ser Arthur Dayne, Ser Oswell Whent, Prince Rhaegar, and Princess Lyanna and High Septon Maynard, letters which the faith has accepted as proof Lord Tyrell." Richard said handing the letters to the three judges.
He watched as Jon Arryn squirmed when the letters were read and when each of the judges nodded that they were as had been said, and then he turned to Jon Arryn to see if he'd do what his uncle had said he would.
"I was unaware of such letters or such an arrangement as was the entire realm. So I cannot be convicted based on things I had no knowledge of." Jon Arryn said looking to the room.
"You were unaware you say?" he asked
"I was."
"So my mother never tried to contact Robert or yourself, never sent a letter to either of you?"
"She did not, we marched under the assumption she had been kidnapped, nether Robert or myself knew any different."
"Ser Richard." he said and his Master of Whisperers stepped forward again holding another letter, one which had taken using the glass candles to find.
"Your grace, a letter from your mother to Robert Baratheon explaining the truth." Richard said.
"Where did you get that?" Jon Arryn called out.
"In the king's chambers," Richard said handing the letter to the judges.
"I never saw that." Jon Arryn said his voice panicked.
"Did you not? So you didn't comfort Robert when he received it, didn't tell him it was a lie and my mother was playing hard to get?" Jae said and Jon Arryn gulped.
"How could, how…"
He looked at the man and then decided no, he didn't deserve to know how he found it out. He knew those in the room who were closest to him knew and Jon Arryn didn't deserve to.
"You used the lie of my mother's kidnapping to fuel your own ambitions, my lord. You, Robert Baratheon and Hoster Tully all used that lie and it cost me my uncle, my grandfather and grandmother, my sister, brother, their mother and my mother and father."
"I..we never.."
"Yet that as not the extent of your treason was it, for you also lied about me when you knew the truth, did you not?"
"I believed you to be a bastard, a lie." Jon Arryn said standing a little straighter.
"Did you now? Lord Royce step forward."
He watched as the Lord of Runestone moved to the center of the room, Jon Arryn glaring at the man as Yohn Royce stood stiffly while looking straight ahead at him.
"Lord Royce."
"Your grace." the man said with a small bow.
"Lord Royce, when did you find out the truth about me?" he asked.
"Before the Battle of the Trident against Lord Stark." Yohn said.
"How, my lord?"
"We had marched believing you to be false, your grace. Lord Arryn himself confirmed this to us many times. On the eve of the battle, Lord Stark parlayed with us, he offered us terms and Lord Arryn refused. Instead he offered his own."
"Which were."
"That Lord Stark would be allowed join the Night's Watch and his son would keep Winterfell, that the North would face no further punishment and that your grace would lose his head." Yohn said to shocked murmurs.
"How did that prove him a liar, my lord?" Jaime asked.
"He called his grace, Lord Stark's nephew, Lord Hand. When we marched we did so under the assumption that his grace was Lord Stark' son."
"Lord Arryn told you this?" Oberyn asked.
"Numerous times Prince Oberyn." Yohn said.
"Thank you, my lord." Jae said and Lord Yohn turned and walked away not even sharing a second glance with his former liege.
"It's clear you never intended to give me a fair trial. You present false documents and testimony and you call this justice?"
"I call it a trial Lord Arryn, more than you gave Lady Lysa or Robert Arryn." he said to shouts from the falcon.
"How dare you, I was the wronged party."
"Yet you held no trial did you Lord Arryn. You just sent them to the Black Cells and left them there to rot. But we should not look for honor in such a duplicitous dishonorable man such as yourself. Is this court convinced of the validity of Lord Royce's statement or does it need more proof?" he asked, willing to have Estermont brought out if need be.
"We are your grace." Mace said.
"I demand trial by combat." Jon Arryn said loudly.
"Do you have a champion?" Jaime asked.
"Aye, Ned Stark will stand for me." the falcon said smiling when he looked at him, the crowd in shock at the turn of events.
"Lord Stark." he called and his uncle stood forward "Will you stand for Lord Arryn?"
"No." his uncle said loudly.
"Ned please." Jon Arryn said looking to his former foster son with a look of pleading as he realized that his uncle hadn't been as taken in as he'd thought he had.
"I'll not sully my honor on a man such as this, not after the lies he told me during the rebellion have been exposed so clearly and truly. As High As Honor, Jon, that's what you were supposed to represent and it's clear to me, to everyone, that you failed to live up to your words. You are a liar, a traitor and I spit on the day I met you".
Seeing his uncle so angered, so resolute, gave him a sense of kinship with him he'd not had in many a year. Jae felt the last remnants of any anger or annoyance he had at him for how he was raised or what he may have planned for him just fade away and though he'd thought the rift between them long healed, he truly felt it now on this day.
"Do you have another champion Lord Arryn?" he asked and he could see the man was broken and so after a few moments of silence he turned to the judges "My lords, my prince, your verdict?
"Guilty." Oberyn said.
"Guilty." Jaime added.
"Guilty." Mace said firmly.
"Lord Arryn, you have been found guilty of treason, it is the sentence of this court that you shall be taken from here to the Dragonpit at dusk and there be executed. Do you have any final words?" Jaime said to silence.
"Take him away." Oberyn said and Jae sat back, relieved wasn't quite how he felt and satisfied didn't cover it either. He was eager though, eager to see him lose his head, eager to end his life and put aside some of the thoughts of what he'd cost him.
King's Landing 298 AC.
Ned Stark.
It had been hard to watch Jon Arryn try and lie his way through the trial, even knowing what he would say and how he would try and defend himself didn't make it any easier. Yet he felt no shame in playing his part, no sympathy for the man as he was brought low. The evidence against him was overwhelming and damning and Ned felt if ever there was a man who deserved death then it was his former mentor.
He could see it now, how he'd been manipulated, played and he wondered what his life would have turned out like if Jaime Lannister hadn't taken Jaehaerys away all those years ago. Would he have gone through the rest of it as clueless as he had been? Would he and Cat still be together and he be oblivious to her true nature? What would his children's lives be like? For he knew that even had he not believed his own to be better, which he did, theirs certainly were.
Arya was growing to be a fine Northern Lady, Sansa though young was fierce and formidable, Robb was already an heir any man could be proud of and Bran was soon to be a lord in his own right. Soon enough they'd have another babe too, a brother or sister to call their own and he wondered would that have been possible if he'd kept his head buried in the sand? No, he doubted it would, and while being classless had its benefits, he'd not change his life for anything.
"Father, why are they holding the execution so quickly?" Robb asked as they rode to the Dragonpit.
"Our way is the old way Robb, the man who passes the sentence must swing the sword, and once a man's been found guilty then he shouldn't see another dawn. His crimes must be answered the day the sentence is reached." Ned said and Robb nodded.
"Will Jae do this himself?" Robb asked and Ned shook his head.
"No, the king uses the King's Justice for such things." he said and Robb nodded.
"Neither Sansa nor Elle wished to be at the execution. Arya though demanded it, saying the man had cost her family as much as he had Jae and Ned felt so very proud of her for saying so."
That he wished his daughter not to be a part of this was a fleeting thought, were she his son, and this in the North he'd ask her to witness it, so why should it be different that she was his daughter and this was the South. As they reached the Dragonpit he was amazed how full it was, whether it was his nephew or those who followed his orders they seemed to have a knack for spectacle. Though given how the smallfolk had reacted when Jaehaerys had been crowned, he wouldn't be surprised if it took no organizing at all to get this crowd to come out to see a traitor lose his head.
Watching her son sit the throne, seeing him wear the crown, and even during the trail watching and listening as he spoke, he knew Lyanna was right. Jaehaerys was born to be the king and anything less for him would have been an insult to his sister's memory. Hearing Arya's excited squeal, he looked up as the five dragons flew over the Dragonpit, to say it was an impressive sight would be an understatement and he wondered if others were as awed as he. They were shown to their seats and he looked to see where Jaehaerys was only to find he couldn't see him anywhere. Before he had time to wonder about it, he saw the Northern Lords look to him and heard Jaime Lannister speak.
"My Lords, Ladies, good men and women of King's Landing and Westeros, Earlier Today Jon Arryn was found guilty of treason. By order of King Jaehaerys the Third of his Name, King of the Andals, Rhoynar and First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm, he was sentenced to die and his grace asks you all to witness what fate awaits traitors." Jaime said.
Ned looked on as Jon Arryn was led out to the wooden block in the middle of the Dragonpit and he watched as people moved forward in their seats. He like the others was surprised to see Jaehaerys and the Kingsguard walk towards them and then he felt the hush of the crowd as his nephew turned to speak.
"This man is as responsible as any for the deaths of my family. For Brandon Stark, For Rickard Stark, For Rhaella Targaryen, For Rhaenys Targaryen, For Aegon Targaryen and For Elia Martell."
He saw Jae struggle a little and compose himself before he continued.
"For Rhaegar Targaryen and For Lyanna Targaryen. Their blood is on his hands and though it brings me no respite for their loss, nothing ever could. It is in their names and in the name of Justice and not Vengeance that Jon Arryn will lose his head here today."
He heard the gasp when Jaehaerys pulled Blackfyre from his back and then when Jon Arryn was placed over the block. The crowd realizing that the King's Justice would be served by the king himself and Ned looking to see the Greatjon, Maege and Jorah, Howland and Domeric, The Glovers, Karstarks and Robb, and Arya all looking on with approval in their eyes.
"Our way is the old way." Robb said softly beside him.
Ned looked out as Jaehaerys took his position behind Jon Arryn. This man he had once been proud to call his foster father, who he had once looked up to as the epitome of all that was honorable and good and who had been a mummer. He felt nothing when Jae raised the sword, and that it was clean was far more than the man deserved as he watched when his head was removed. He didn't feel sadness, nor regret at his passing, nor did he feel avenged. Instead just as Jaehaerys had said, he felt Justice had been served.
A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed, I've done the first part of the review answers up to chapter 125. in the next chapter I'll do chapter 126 and 127 and we should be up to date then. Up Next Jae spends some time with Joy and Arya as the wedding draws closer. More trials are held and judgments dished out. we check in with Cat and LF as news from the capital forces them to move and appointments to the small council, Lord Paramount's and rewards are dished out.
Chapter 123 Reviews
Silverglow: Jae being trained by Arthur, Jaime, etc. is more attuned to his surroundings during a battle. I kinda like that detail, it allows us to remember the changes that he's gone through and Jaime's influences. Barry would be so used to knowing how to secure places. Jae has some other big plans to help secure their reign using his future children too which we'll see referenced from here on.
Vdwade: We'll see Shiera speak to both Aemon and Jae regarding Bloodraven soon.
XanMerrick: Thank you, my friend. No worries, the site decided to hold back reviews in any way, maybe you're internet problems influenced theirs, just kidding, good to hear from you.
The sphinx: No problem my friend.
Xand007: Thank you, my friend. I will continue on through rather than do a separate story, so more arc 3 is coming to an end and arc 4 to begin. We'll see some peace though before we get ready for the next war, a bit of settling down period.
Chapter 124 Reviews.
Vdwade: What we see with Leaf may not be always true when shown through Bloodraven's eyes, consider him an unreliable narrator on things north of the wall. Euron is just about at his canon timeline, you're right about Balon, it really was a dumb dreamers plan. Glad you liked the white eyes and we'll see Jaqen pop up in KL soon enough.
Zyrus:: Renly is recovering, his time in the cells took a lot out of him, we'll see him during the trials, in terms of the chapter, basically Jaqen grabbed something important for Jae in Oldtown, Arya readied to head to KL, Kinvara helped the Free Folk. Bloodraven saw what he wished and Euron made his move.
Daryl Dixon: Don't worry she will.
Biohazard: So glad you liked it.
Remi: There is a bit of that going on with Cat, yes. The warging was Jae, this was a sight of what he did in the tent after the having the vision about Marge, we'll see it more clearly next, Leaf you'll see but mainly think of anything Bloodraven sees as unreliable North of the wall. Euron we'll see he's heading to the Kingsmoot and will be mentioned before he moves next.
Anarchichmind: Thank you, I couldn't not have her there and I like giving an insight into her life on Bear Island. On the magic, I know I won't get it right completely, but I at least want it to be somewhat explainable and to have some sort of rules, logic to it. Yes, the armor needs to be reshaped, when it gets done this time it'll be his forever armor if you get me.
Magneticducky: No, Bloodraven sees what he wishes when it comes to Leaf/Kinvara, Leaf's next pov explains it more.
Spartan: Yes he is.
Ksveela: The warging was Jae, this was what happened when he mass warged in the tent that time, I wanted to show it from the views around the world of it, to show just how much he actually warged into, the next couple of chapters will show it more. We'll see more with Bloodraven's plans in a bit, all I can say is that Shiera, the pin, Jae, and Marge are all key to it.
Reikson: Thanks I messed that up and have since rewritten it, it was supposed to be Aegon
Jessicanightmarewolf: I wanted to show some explanation as to why Jae and the others can do what they can and Faegon couldn't, where the line changed and why it's almost been that Jae is inevitable so to speak.
Wsbenge: Exactly, we'll be looking North properly in a few chapters.
Denoltdn: Yes she is, Euron will make his move in a little, bit, the next few chapters will feel slower paced as they deal with reunions and more peaceful topics before we get to the tourney.
Bkshadow: Glad you liked it and yes, Leaf though is the only one who knows that Bloodraven doesn't serve the same goals, so yes, opposing goals, the rest of the children, like Leaf did, believed they were on the same side and now Leaf knows they are not and will try and free the others.
Lady Octarina: On the animals, this was seeing how Jae's mass warging was seen around the world, both from the side of people looking at it and from the animal's side also, we see for example with the eagle that they receive something from Jae's warging as the eagle almost feels younger, more vital.
Jaqen will pop up before or after the wedding, and he and Jae will speak. On Cat's dreams, we'll see what they are a little later, I kinda wanted to show how sometimes the grass really isn't greener and it's also a little of the parallel with Sansa in canon, obviously not the sex part but the realizing what LF is and feeling trapped. Glad you liked Bear Island and the ladies. Beneath the Sea is more metaphor though in some ways you may be onto something too, won't say too much, but Euron/BR are connected. Basically, though Bloodraven going beneath the Sea is going to a place where he can keep his plans from the eyes of the gods.
The Dalla save was something that came to me looking at the timeline, in canon she dies right about know during the battle at the wall, here the timing of Kinvara's arrival allows for that not to happen, it's funny when you have a god willing your journey how you arrive just when needed.
That's the thing, I both wanted to explain the difference between Jae and Faegon in terms of magic, show the links between the magical bloodlines which adds into the PTWP and Bringing the Dawn as being more than just, he'll kill the NK, it's far more than that, it's more magical. But also when researching the links and coming up with this theory regarding, Jae, the Ice and Fire, the combinations of the blood, Blackwood/Targ, Mya, Gwenys, Bloodraven, even the bastards, it hit me as something even more.
As you say before with the dragons, yes they had some family members who were a bit nuts, but nothing like it was post the dragons fall, it's like they lost a part of themselves and are trying to get it back and just didn't know how, almost an addiction they couldn't fix, so I wanted to explore that and have Sarella do it, we'll see it delved into more with Aemon, Shiera, Sarella and Jae himself and with the books he found.
Naruto: So very glad you liked it. Bloodraven's key goal is Jae, which we'll see more of and as for Jaqen he'll be popping up very soon once again.
Hunterofaremis: So very glad you liked it and I've been enjoying your story so much, look forward to reading the rest, I, unfortunately, had to stop where I reviewed, but I've put time aside to read the next few chapters.
Guest; So glad you enjoyed it, Cat is having a real does of buyers remorse lol. It was to be a bit like that, kinda knowing there is more to come before we get to the big bad himself, glad you liked Sarella's bit.
Ace Venom: I kinda wanted to go a little with the Sansa/Vale thing with Cat, she's in somewhat the same position as Sansa was there and only now realizing it. Bloodraven has his goal and eye firmly fixed on Jae, we'll see in a few chapters a very interesting conversation with Shiera/Jae about him.
Celexys: So very glad you noticed that, I want to answer stuff but not have it that it's all know before it needs to be, what I hope I don't do is make it like Lost or something where there are still unanswered questions at the end though.
Adgeless: It was a bit like that on purpose in that most of them deal with far more structured plots if you get me, or are simply a look in, here there are things going on which we're glimpsing but aren't fully explained and there are more setups than full explanations, over time the other ATW kinda were clearer in that we could see with Dany or someone where they were going, here it's not the same, though it's on purpose.
Anja: So glad you liked it.
Xan Merrick: Thank you, my friend. That's it with Victarion, he may have done a decent job as king, his plan here was to bend the knee and hope for the best if named king, or to run and enjoy whatever life he had left if not, Euron of course will mess that up. We'll see Jaqen in a little while and get an explanation of what he Faceless Men's goals are. So glad you liked the Arya/Lyanna bit. We'll see more explanation on the magical aspect, so hope you like them.
Xand007: Thanks my friend: It is yes, we'll see Jaqen meet Jae soon enough. Cat may do the same to LF too. Euron won't expect Jae, we'll see them discuss him soon enough. Bloodraven will make his move in a few chapters.
Bellaswan: On the dragons, we'll see something very different in regards to them, something I've always wished to try, as for Shiera, she and Jae will discuss Bloodraven very soon, Jae does have time for the NK, so we'll see him prepare.
Guest: I changed the Betha Blackwood stuff, it was a typo, somehow I forgot about Egg lol, it's fixed now, but the timeline/bloodline is important. Really glad you liked it.
Mrspotter: You're more than welcome.
Silverglow: We'll see with the FM, but Jae or no one close to him had anything to do with it. Victarion sees the writing on the wall and so he's like I'll enjoy my life until I die, now he'll try something else and as for Asha, we'll see her in a bit. Arya is very resilient. Cat is examining a lot of her life and choices so we'll see where that leads her.
On the Free Folk, a lot more, yes. On Bloodraven think of it like this, anything North of the wall he sees what he wishes from now on, when he looks at Jae he's seeing the truth, hope that helps. The warging was that yes, shown both from the side of people looking on and the animals themselves. We'll see Jae explain it more as we go too. Exactly, Euron is pretty much following canon, though he'll have things to deal with he's not planned for, dragons.
Johndouglas: Once a dragon is bonded it can't be taken and the Targs here are united.
Creativo: Nope, he'll make it to KL.
Galo: really glad you liked it. And Faegon's end.
Guest: On Balon we'll find out during the Kingsmoot, it'll be unexpected.
Chapter 125 Reviews.
Daryl Dixon: I will don't worry, it may seem like it's taken time but I promise to make it worthwhile.
Jessicanighmarewolf: It seems it has, though I've now got a mountain of them to answer lol. I'm glad to hear that with Brynden, he's in such a horrible position and at heart is a good man. Yep, the end of the Blackfyres.
Venkingheaven: Yes but not to many people, Jae will speak on it to one or two as will Gerion.
Remi: She is yes, I had planned on putting her Pov much later but there was confusion about Bloodravens so I moved it up. Ned did wish to mourn for Robert but as you see he had ulterior motives too. Exactly, even though in a way Faegon was tragic and lied to, he did terrible things and deserved his end.
Adgedless: Yep his line is ended forever. I do like the idea of a more perfect version of the Lion/Dragon working side by side, take out Tywin's ruthlessness and Aerys madness and this is what you get. With Ned, all was not as it seems. I do think that with the Blackfish as you put it here, he's a good man caught in a horrible situation, things will get better for him, we'll see him and Bran in Riverrun in a little while.
Biohaazard: Thanks so much.
Jman: Really glad you liked it.
Spartan: It's damnable annoying, but I swore to get to them all and I will. We'll see with the Wildfire, that they can be transported does help and it would take a dragon to set them off now.
Tpartos: Thanks so much, glad you're liking it and thank you for the advice, it's much appreciated.
Anarchichmind: I wanted it to be the whole lot of them playing their part and for it to be different than other sentences, I do get what you mean about the symbolism of Blackfrye, but as much as he did anything to Jae, he also committed crimes against Dany and the Dragons too. I do have some plans in terms of Jae/Marge and kings landing, you can see some of it here and as for Joy, though she's only briefly mentioned here it's because we see her pov in the next chapter and I wanted to save it for that.
: They seem to be back and we'll see Euron post the wedding, so a few chapters away.
Mslady: I really hope then you liked the reveal of what he was doing.
Naruto: thanks so very much.
Zyrus: Even knowing that though, he stole a dragon, invaded a country, tried to assassinate a man he thought was his brother, allowed people to be burned by wildfire, and killed a man he thought of as a father figure. His crimes were against House Targaryen more so than even the realm though, and so he faced their justice. Plus no matter what anyone says death by dragon fire is instant, more so than losing a head or hanging.
Em1624: it seems to happen every so often, thankfully it looks fixed now.
Scarila; So glad you liked it. I think it worked best having them end him. Also to have them all play their role. We'll see with Sandorix very soon as for Jae/Marge it's coming. No it was Jae, we'll see a different side to it when we see Bloodraven's own version.
Vfsnake: Hope you enjoyed the Ned part and Jon A's end.
Guest: Ned was playing his own little game which Jon A just saw as for Shiera, we'll see a much more in-depth pov of her soon.
Orion: So very glad you think so.
Bellaswan: We will see that, he'll also begin to prepare the kingdom so that the Targs will never have to worry about being overthrown once again. In terms of Dany/Shiera he wouldn't dare, not a Jae who saw what it did to his mother.
Happy fox: We'll see, Jae doesn't truly know about the COTF more than a dream as such so we'll see but the Isle of faces is a big thing to come.
Dunk: With some of the meetings I want to show them more in other povs, so though it may look as if they're been skimped on, they're not. We will see Jae deal with the HS, he won't really have a choice but to. In terms of the High Sparrow, the devastation of war and the unrest of the Smallfolk led to his rise, here neither is happening. We'll see with the Western City as we go back North, but the keep/city will be close enough to both WF and the coast. On Faegon I wanted it to be a bit like that and mainly for it to be a House Targaryen thing. On Ned, I hope you liked what I was setting up with him.
: Really glad you've enjoyed it.
Denoltdn: It seems done thank god.
Anja: So glad you liked it.
Lady Octarina: I'm glad you felt for the BF he deserved better your right, Oberyn has some happier times coming. Yeah, three at least, had this been earlier with Cregan they'd have given him the Moat but I feel Sea Dragon Point is so much better for him, it's closer to Arya too. On the animals this is Jae not Bloodraven, so he and Jae may speak to it. Jae really needs Marge but you're right how focussed he'll be with her there is a different matter. Yep, he's gone and good riddance.
Hunterofaremis: Yes finally and now we can have some downtime before we have to deal with some more annoying people.
Mattjackson: They've finally popped back up and so glad you're enjoying it.
Silverglow: They have yes, Loras especially really is duty-bound. Robb kinda because of Ned isn't allowed to shine as much so early, for me it makes sense that Ned wouldn't let him anywhere near Wildfire, so I've tried to show some of Robb in a different way, now there is a big war to come where we'll see more of canon Robb too. With the BF, it really is a case of the only family have left. With Richard he sees the others do that and he's also looking to the future when he won't be there, so he's keener to have Jae be a bit more ruthless than the others would be.
With Leaf, we'll see more of her soon. I do like the image of all the Roses on the rose road, and Olenna being somewhat proud of Mace at times. Jae will have to deal with the HS at some point. We'll I'd rather the work than miss the replies.
Alextor: We're in 298 so Jon is 15, we're pretty much at canon where the books started year-wise, the show made them all ac couple of years older.
Mrspotter: Yes, though lesser than it could be.
Xan Merrick: Thank you my friend. No worries about the length of reviews, glad you're reading.
Creativo: Los targs tienen dragones, no necesitan límites.
La man99: So very glad you enjoyed it.
Irish Hermit: One of the things with the BF is through Bran he'll rebuild his name somewhat and in the song regarding the Tully's he's portrayed favorably, but it is sad to see him like this. Glad you liked Faegon's end I thought it fitting. No, Cat was more mentally and physically exhausted and more she while not so much passed out, she was checked out if that makes sense. We may see mention of that with the heads, we'll certainly see bodies brought back to Casterly Rock as for Ned, hope these last couple of chapters pleased you.
