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Chapter Forty-Four: Heirs

Arya

"Jaqen H'ghar gave you three kills," Gendry was saying as they walked through the woods. She was sure that they were still walking toward Riverrun, but it was taking them a very long time to reach the Red Fork. They had been traveling for at least a fortnight and there was still no sign of it. She didn't want to have this conversation with Gendry, but she would rather have it than the one where he questioned whether she was leading them in the correct direction.

"Would you please shut up," she hissed at him. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"No," Gendry told her with a smile. "I'm just trying to understand it, I swear. Jaqen H'ghar gave you three kills. You could have named anybody in the Seven Kingdoms. Anyone you wanted. Dead. All you had to do was give him the names. Anyone."

She sighed, she knew where he was going with this, there were nights when she repeated her list to herself before she went to bed and she realized that there were so many other people she could have chosen. Better people. "Yes," she agreed with him. She knew that he would not shut up until he got to the bottom of it.

"You could have picked King Joffrey."

"Shut up."

"You could have picked Tywin Lannister."

"I wanted to make Harrenhal safe," Arya defended herself.

"Well you didn't do a good job of it, else we wouldn't have run away," Gendry pointed out.

"I know," Arya admitted angrily.

"You could have made the entire Seven Kingdoms safe," Gendry continued. "You could have returned to your family. You could have ended the entire war."

Arya was about to yell at him again. She didn't need him pointing out what a fool she was. She already knew. She knew she was a fool and an idiot. Jaqen H'ghar had given her a great gift and she had wasted it on three people she could have killed herself. She was a fool, but she did not need some bastard from King's Landing pointing it out.

The country was full to the brim with trouble caused by King's Landing bastards. She did not want to have to deal with Gendry's trouble.

She was about to tell him as much when they heard someone singing through the trees on the path above them. Gendry knew enough to get low and be quiet, but stupid Hot Pie looked as though he meant to walk up onto the road. Arya grabbed him and forced him to duck as the three of them hid behind a stone wall.

It was a small group, no more than five. But they were all armed. Arya watched them through a small hole in the wall as they walked closer. The man at the front of the group kept singing, Arya did not know the song, but she thought that she had heard it in King's Landing. Hot Pie wanted to steal from them. But of the three of them only Arya was comfortable with a sword and these were grown men. There was no way that she alone would be able to take them all on.

She was about to tell Hot Pie that when an arrow soared through the hole she was peeking through. She quickly darted to the side, bringing Hot Pie with her. After all the complaining he had done there was a part of her that wondered if she should let him die.

But knowing him he wouldn't even be able to die quietly.

And then they would be caught.

"What's hidden behind that wall?" the man that had been singing asked. "A lion? A wolf?"

"Just a dirty little common thing," another voice drawled out.

"Loose a few more shots," a third suggested.

"Don't!" Arya commanded, making a quick decision. If she made herself known they might die. If they stayed hidden she was certain they would. Maybe these men would be able to help them find the Red Fork. It was worth the risk, perhaps, if only to save their lives. She ran away from the wall, standing far back from the path so that they would be able to see her, her sword held tight in her grasp.

The leader, the one that had been singing and another approached the wall they had been hiding behind. They both studied her as if they had never seen anything like her. And perhaps they hadn't. "Put your sword down girl," the leader told her.

She would not. She nodded her head to them, "You go on down the road," she commanded, hoping that they would not be able to hear the fear in her voice as she spoke to them. "Just keep on singing so that we know where you are. Leave us be and I won't kill you."

That made them laugh. Arya's jaw clenched and her grasp tightened on her sword. If she were a boy, if she were Robb or Jon they would have taken her seriously. If she were Robb's wife Lenora they would have taken her seriously. But she was small and they thought that she was no one. And they laughed at her when she gave them orders. "I mean it," she told them, brandishing her sword at them.

They laughed some more. "Generous," the second man told her.

The first man smiled at her as he pointed to her, "You're a dangerous person," he told her. "I like dangerous people." Then he dropped his voice to a whisper, "Why are your friends so shy?"

"What friends?" Arya asked, hoping that Gendry and Hot Pie would be able to remain hidden.

The second man sighed, "The fat one to your left and the lad beside him."

How did he know about them? Arya wondered as Gendry grabbed Hot Pie by the shoulder and forced the boy to stand beside her in view of the men. Does he have some sort of sight?

The first man watched them all for a moment before he jumped over the wall and came to stand in front of them. The second one with the bow followed behind him. And two more. "Three young ones on the run carrying castle forged steel?" he asked. "Did you escape from Harrenhal?"

"Who are you?" Arya asked, her voice trembling a bit. She did not want to die, but she would not let these men bring her back to Harrenhal. She would turn her sword on herself before that happened.

"Thoros of Myr," he told her. "And the fellow over here with the bow is Anguy." Her eyes narrowed, Thoros of Myr had ridden in the Hands Tournament when they had first arrived in King's Landing. Before everything had gone wrong. When Robert was hunting and her father sat on the Iron Throne he had sent Thoros and several other knights including Lord Beric Dondarrion after the Mountain. Clearly they had not been successful.

"No," Arya told him, shaking her head, she did not want them to know that she recognized them. "Who do you fight for?"

"The Brotherhood Without Banners," he told her.

She took a step back, heartened when she felt Gendry's body behind her. All those weeks in Harrenhal hearing people get tortured as they looked for the Brotherhood Without Banners and here they were. It was a band of outlaws who fought for no one but themselves. They said they meant to keep the Seven Kingdoms safe regardless of who the king was. But mostly they just stole and kidnapped people for ransom.

That would be even worse than returning to Harrenhal.

Thoros told them that they were going to go with them. He promised that no harm would come to them. Arya did not quite believe it, but with a sideways glance at Gendry she knew that they did not have much of a choice. Alive or dead they would be going with the Brotherhood.

And she much preferred alive.

Hot Pie was happy enough to go after they promised him brown bread and stew.

They brought them to an inn and under all the noise of the people Arya hissed at Gendry that she could not have them knowing who she was. If they believed she was a common girl they might let her go. If they knew she was Arya Stark they would ransom her for gold. And she was sure no one would match what the Lannisters were willing to give for her.

"No one has heard it from me since you told me, Ari," Gendry hissed back at her. "No one will hear now."

She believed him.

Unfortunately he was not the only one who knew her secret.

Once they had food in front of them Thoros set about trying to figure out who they were, "Now," he said, looking specifically at Arya, they had spent little time together, but it seemed clear to him who the leader of the group was. "How did three children -"

"We're not children," Arya interrupted him.

He sighed, "Very well. How did three young persons, such as yourselves, untrained in the art of war, escape from Harrenhal?"

"Gendry's a smith," Arya told them, though she instantly regretted it. She wanted to get away from the Brotherhood, not make them look like more attractive hostages. But she had already started, there was no backtracking now. "He stole us weapons."

"I see," Thoros told her, his tone sarcastic. "Fought your way out of Harrenhal did you?"

"He knows how to use a weapon," Arya lied. "And so do I." The men around her laughed at her, they didn't believe it. She should not have let her pride get the better of her, but she did. "My brothers taught me," she defended herself.

They laughed at her more.

She stood from her seat and drew her sword. She misliked it, it was heavier than needle, not as well balanced. She was not used to it. But she hoped it would do the job. Thoros stared at her sword for a moment before he stood up and drew his own sword. With a turn and a swipe of his sword he sent hers clattering to the ground without even putting down his horn of ale.

The men cheered as Arya sheepishly picked up her sword and sat back down at the table in front of him, unable to meet anyone's eyes.

"To your brothers," he toasted before looking between the three of them. "You can finish your meal before you go," he offered. "It might be a while before you see another."

"But you'll free us?" Arya asked suspiciously.

"I gave you my word," Thoros told her.

She looked at Gendry and Hot Pie and all three of them quickly stood up. She had no interest in finishing her meal. She wanted to be as far away from the Brotherhood as possible. They turned to head toward the door, but it was too late, someone was coming in.

Anguy led the way into the inn cheering as two men behind him struggled with a large man who wore a hood. Arya watched as Thoros moved closer to him and took the hood off, joking the entire time.

She only needed to see the scars to turn away from him. It was the Hound. She knew him and she was sure that he would know her. As Thoros taunted him Arya grabbed Hot Pie's shoulder and shoved him toward the door, Gendry followed close behind, and she walked last with her head down, praying to the Old Gods and the New that the Hound would be distracted enough not to notice three children walking by him.

She had made it five steps past him when he called out, "Girl."

She stopped walking, but she did not turn to look at him. Ahead of her Gendry and Hot Pie stopped walking as well. She would not look at him, but she heard him as he turned to Thoros. "What in the Seven Hells are you doing with a Stark bitch?"

She sighed. Thoros had given her his word. But she wasn't going to be set free now.

They would not let her go anywhere. That much she was sure of.

-.-.-.-.-

Lenora

After the Lord Hoster's funeral she went to see the boys. Willem and Martyn Lannister were her cousins, of a sort. Her great grandfather's brother's great grandchildren. She did not know them well, though she had met Martyn a few times as he had been a ward of her uncle Kevan. They were kept up in a tower cell for which she was grateful. She would have been heartbroken to see the two boys locked in one of the cells beneath Riverrun.

And they were boys.

They looked so frightened when the door to their cell opened. Their fear did not abate, even when they recognized her. She saw Willem's green eyes flick over her shoulder toward the guard who walked behind her. Ever since Jaime had escaped Robb had taken to having her guarded whenever she was not with him. He seemed to think that Jaime was going to march straight back to Riverrun to steal her from him.

She turned her head to glance at the guard over her shoulder, "You can leave us," she told him, her voice leaving no room for argument though she was sure that he would try. "As you can see, Jaime Lannister is not hiding in the cell, waiting to grab me."

The guard looked uneasy for a moment, either way he was disobeying an order. If he left he was disobeying Robb, if he stayed he was disobeying Lenora. She sighed, "I won't tell the king if you don't," she told him.

He left. After the door swung shut behind him she turned back to the boys and winked at them. "There," she told them, trying to soothe them. "We're quite alone now."

"You're the king's sister," Martyn spoke up, trying to seem brave, he was the eldest of the two brothers. A blush rose to his cheeks as if he thought that he had done something stupid. "King Joffrey I mean."

She nodded at him, "I am," she agreed, thinking that it was easier to lie to the boys than to explain the truth of it. That she knew that Joffrey was a bastard and only half her brother. The boys wouldn't believe it or understand it. And it would only cause them stress. "And you're his cousins. I believe that makes us family."

Martyn shrugged his shoulder, "We have never met the king," he told her.

"That's a good thing," Lenora assured him. The boy looked shocked at her statement, as if he still believed that at any moment someone would come to arrest her for treason. She smiled at them and settled herself down on the floor of their cell. She had brought a basket with her and now she placed it in front of her, opening it up. "Are you two hungry?" she asked them.

The boys shook their heads, but she knew that it was a lie. They only got two meals a day. A thin oatmeal to break their fasts and a small dinner. Of course they would be hungry.

"It's not poisoned," Lenora assured them as she reached into the basket and pulled out an apple. There was more appealing food in the basket, but Lenora wanted to leave that for the boys. "I promise you, I had thought that the three of us could have a picnic of sorts."

Willem was the first one to give in and move to the floor beside her. He gasped when he looked in the basket and saw the food she had brought them. "Martyn," the boy gasped out, turning to look at his older brother. "There's fish," he he told him. "Wrapped in bacon." He turned to look at Lenora, his eyes wide and excited, "I haven't had bacon since we came to war."

Lenora smiled softly at him and reached out, gently stroking his cheek. "Well have some now, little love," she told him, using a nickname that her mother used to call her when she was a child.

He looked at her, his jaw clenching, "I am not little," he told her. "I am fourteen years old. A man."

Lenora smiled at him and nodded, trying not to make a big deal of the fact that Martyn had climbed off his bed and moved to the floor as well so that he could sit with her and his brother. She nudged the basket toward him so that he could reach in and take some food as well. "Of course you are," she told Willem with a nod. "It's been so long since I've seen you that I still think of you as the little cousins I once knew."

Willem nodded, "You got married," he told her, as if she was unaware of that fact. "And I grew up. Soon my father will have to find wives for Martyn and I. Though I imagine that he will wait until after the war. Before we came to squire for Lord Tywin he told us that once Robb Stark was dead he would find us wives."

"Willem," Martyn hissed at him as he cut into his fish. "Princess Lenora is married to Robb Stark. I am sure she does not want to hear about that."

Lenora smiled at him and nodded, "Thank you, Martyn," she told him. She looked between the two boys letting them eat for a moment before she asked them. "Are you treated well up here?" she asked.

"Well enough, my Lady," Martyn told her.

She looked at them, they had the pale skin of Lannisters, there was a bruise on the side of Willem's head. She reached out and touched the bruise with her index finger. "Where did this come from?" she asked.

"When we were captured," Willem told her. "It was much worse a fortnight ago."

Lenora smiled at him, he was a brave little boy who thought himself a man.

"Is it true?" Martyn asked her. "What they say?"

"I don't know," Lenora told him before she took a bite of her apple. "What do they say?"

"They say that Robb Stark forced you to marry him," Willem told her before his older brother could say anything.

"False," Lenora told the boy with a smile. "I agreed to marry him."

"They say that he can turn into a wolf when he wants," Martyn told her.

Lenora shook her head taking another bite of her apple. "Ghost story," she told him. "I assure you. I have been married to him for a year now and I have never seen him turn into a wolf."

"But he has a wolf," Willem told her. "The guards have seen it."

"Yes," Lenora told him with a nod. "Grey Wind." She watched the two boys for a moment, they looked afraid though they did not want her to see it. "He will not hurt you," she promised them.

"At Harrenhal they said that he feasted on the flesh of his enemies," Martyn told her.

"Why would he eat human flesh when he could have trout wrapped in bacon?" Lenora asked him. She shook her head. "He much prefers fish."

Martyn turned to look at Willem, "I told you," he hissed at his younger brother. "He won't eat us. That's not why he's keeping us alive. Princess Lenora would never let him. She's a Lannister, same as us."

"I'm a Baratheon," Lenora told him, her voice stern. It had not gone unnoticed that Martyn continued to call her Princess, he did not recognize her husband's crown and because of that he would not call her Queen. She did not mind, a title was worth very little in a prison cell. But she would not have the boys thinking that she meant to help them escape somehow. "Now a Stark."

"Until Lord Tywin kills Robb Stark," Willem told her. "Then you will be a Baratheon again."

"Perhaps," Lenora agreed with him, though she did not look forward to that outcome. She sighed, "Well," she said, preparing to steer the conversation away from Robb's death. "Why don't you tell me the news from home?"

...

"Your Grace," Lady Sybell greeted her. "It's so good of you to come join us." Lenora forced herself not to roll her eyes at Lady Sybell as the woman quickly stood from her seat and sank into a low curtsy in front of her. Her daughters Jeyne and Eleyna quickly did the same.

Since they had sworn their allegiance to Robb and his cause the family had been given quite good chambers to stay in at Riverrun. And each day the Lady Sybell would invite Lenora to have tea with them.

And every day, because courtesy required it, Lenora would join them.

And each day, Lady Sybell would greet her as if it was a great surprise that she had come.

Lenora had found it all entertaining at first, but now she wished that the simpering would come to an end. She believed that the daughters were truly kind girls, but her uncle Kevan had poisoned her mind against the mother. She was sure that the woman would play her false if given the chance.

"Your invitation was most kind, Lady Sybell," Lenora told her with a tight smile as she sat down at her usual seat. The Westerling women waited until she was seated before they sat down as well.

"I was sorry to hear of Lord Hoster's death," Lady Sybell told her as she clapped her hands and sent their maids scurrying toward the table to pour the tea for everyone.

Lenora nodded, "It was quite hard for Lady Catelyn," she told the woman as she took a sip of the tea. It was the same one Lady Sybell always served, a light one with a flowery taste. Lenora had never tasted tea like that before and the first time she had it she had asked Lady Sybell where it came from. The older woman had smiled at her and told her that it was a family recipe, we are Spicers, after all she had told her with a wink.

"I can only imagine," Lady Sybell agreed with her, watching Lenora over her own cup of tea.

"But the king and I are sure that Lord Edmure will do quite well as the new Lord of Riverrun, he'd been doing much of the work before as Lord Hoster got worse."

"Now that he's Lord of Riverrun he will need a wife, for sure," Lady Sybell said, her eyes darting toward her daughters, Jeyne in particular.

"He will," Lenora agreed with a nod. "Though at the present I fear he is much more concerned with defending his lands than he is with finding a wife."

"But surely the best way to defend his lands would be to have an heir," Lady Sybell countered.

Lenora felt a blush rising on her cheeks. Though she was not sure if it was embarrassment at not being able to provide and heir for Robb or if it was anger as Lady Sybell's so obvious scheming and refusal to let the subject drop.

"I have found, as I'm sure you did at the Crag, that having an heir does very little when your enemy has more men and better steel than you do," she said softly, her eyes never leaving Lady Sybell's face. "Heirs secure a future, but steel secures the land."

Lady Sybell was the first to drop her gaze, "Of course," she murmured. "You are quite right, Your Grace."

Lenora watched her for another moment before she nodded and turned toward Jeyne and Eleyna, "Lady Jeyne, Lady Eleyna," she greeted them, giving them a truer smile than she had given their mother. "I hope that the two of you have been enjoying your time here at Riverrun."

"Not as much as Rollam," Eleyna told her with a shy smile. Her eyes quickly dropped to her lap when her mother took a sharp intake of breath, as if to scold her daughter for speaking out.

Lenora smiled softly and nodded, "Rollam does seem to enjoy being Robb's squire," she admitted. "We've come to truly delight in him."

"Yes," Lady Sybell agreed with her, "You delight in Rollam and yet you have sent my eldest son, my brother, and my husband away from Riverrun."

She didn't ask the question, but Lenora knew it was there. Why? She could have ducked her head and told her that Robb did not discuss his plans with her, that would have been what was expected. But she had sat for tea every day since they returned from Riverrun and every day Lady Sybell had needled at her, just on the right side of polite. Lenora was tired of doing what was expected of her. "Yes," she told the older woman as she finished her tea. "Because they swore loyalty and fealty to Robb. Being sent to battle during a war is what loyalty and fealty look like."

She slammed her cup down on the table a little too hard and the handle broke off. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to hide her embarrassment. And then she stood from the table, she knew it was rude, the other women were not yet done with their tea. But she could not and would not sit with them any longer today. "My Ladies," she said, nodding in turn to each of them. "Please excuse me. I must attend Lady Catelyn as well this afternoon."

"Of course," Lady Sybell agreed with a smile over her cup. "There is nothing to excuse. We hope that you will join us for tea again tomorrow. Don't we girls?" The girls nodded dutifully.

Lenora inclined her head and gave them a shallow curtsy, "Of course," she agreed.

They would invite her every day. And every day she would go. But she could not wait until Robb marched again and took her with him. Then she would be free of pretending to be courteous.

"Until tomorrow."

-.-.-.-.-

Margaery

The girl was a fool. A sweet one. A kind one. But a fool all the same. She was a simple little thing who seemed afraid of her own shadow. And who was prone to blushing whenever someone spoke to her. A blush that, as Margaery's grandmother told her, with her red hair made her look like a pomegranate.

But they soothed the girl's worries and her blushes with lemon cakes and a fool named Butterbumps. Though nothing could have prepared the poor girl for Lady Olenna. Margaery smiled as her grandmother asked Sansa if she knew her son, the Lord Pufferfish of Highgarden.

"A great lord," Sansa had told the woman, her tone distant and polite. This girl had learned her courtesies and used them as armor now, Margaery could see that. Perhaps she was not as much of a fool as people had thought. As Margaery had thought.

"A great oaf," her grandmother corrected. "His father was an oaf as well. My husband, I loved him well enough, don't mistake me. He was a kind man, but an appalling oaf all the same. He managed to ride off a cliff whilst hawking. They say he was looking up at the sky and paying no attention to where his horse was taking him." She paused, glancing at Margaery, "And now my of son is doing the same, only he's riding a lion instead of a palfrey. It is easy to mount a lion and not so easy to get off, I warned him."

Margaery smiled at Sansa when she looked at her, her mouth hanging open in surprise. The girl's cheeks colored red again, but she managed to shut her mouth and smile in return.

"Now," Lady Olenna said, leaning forward as she whispered. "I want you to tell us the truth of this royal boy. This Joffrey."

The girl's hand clenched into a fist, her shoulders seemed to shake. She was terrified. Margaery could not help but feel sorry for the poor girl. It was clear that Joffrey had not been as kind to her as the lords and ladies of court said. She almost stopped the girl from answering, but she knew that they needed to know the truth of it.

Her father was set on it. They had already been betrothed. She would marry Joffrey. But her grandmother would have her prepared first.

"I ... I ... I ..." the girl stuttered out, unable to make it past the first word.

"Yes," Lady Olenna lashed out, interrupting the girl before she could stutter anymore. "You ... you ... you. Who else would know better? The lad seems kingly enough, I'll grant you. A bit full of himself, but that would be his Lannister blood. We have heard some troubling tales, however. Is there any truth to them? Has the boy mistreated you?"

Margaery watched the girl, it looked like she was about to cry. Lady Olenna was not as sympathetic or as patient as her granddaughter. "Have the Lannisters stolen your tongue, girl?" she asked.

"Joff," the girl started, but she quickly shook her head. As she was no longer his betrothed she did not have the liberty to call him Joff anymore. "King Joffrey is very fair, and handsome, and ... and he's as brave as a lion."

Margaery sat back in her seat, trying not to sigh in disappointment. If she had wanted to hear someone praise the king she could have talked to anyone else in the castle. But she wanted the truth of it. She needed the truth of it.

"Yes all Lannisters are lions, and when a Tyrell farts it smells like a rose," Lady Olenna snapped, unable to hide her irritation. "But how kind is he? How clever? Has he a good heart, a gentle hand? Is he chivalrous as befits a king? Will he cherish Margaery and treat her tenderly, protect her honor as he would protect his own?"

She still did not look as if she would be able to answer. Margaery smiled at her, "I am to be his wife, Lady Sansa," she told her quietly as her grandmother yelled for Butterbumps to sing a song. The fool was out in the garden, not under the terrace where they sat. He would have to scream in order for them to hear his song. His voice would drown out any answer that Sansa was willing to give them. "I only want to know what that means."

"Tell us the truth," Lady Olenna urged her. "No harm will come to you."

"My father always told the truth," Sansa told her with a whisper.

"Lord Eddard?" Lady Olenna asked her. "Yes, he did have that reputation, but they named him traitor and took his head off even so."

"Joffrey," Sansa said, lifting her eyes for the first time to make eye contact with Lady Olenna. There were tears sparkling in her blue eyes, but she did not let them fall. There was a strength, a fire, and anger that had not been there a moment ago. Both Margaery and her grandmother leaned closer to Sansa now, believing that the girl would finally tell them the truth about her betrothed.

"Joffrey did that. He promised me he would be merciful, and cut my father's head off. He said that was mercy and he took me up on the walls and made me look at it. The head. He wanted me to weep, but ..." her words stopped coming, she shook her head as if she had realized that she had said too much.

"Go on," Margaery prompted her softly. They were finally getting somewhere. She would not have the girl clam up now.

"I can't," the girl told her, her eyes darting between Margaery and her grandmother. "I never meant - my father was a traitor. My brother as well. I have traitor's blood. Please don't make me say more."

"Calm yourself, sweet girl," Lady Olenna commanded her.

But she would not.

"She's terrified, Grandmother," Margaery told her, reaching out to place a gentle hand on Sansa's forearm. The girl flinched away from her for a moment before she relaxed under her hand. "Just look at her."

Lady Olenna sighed and leaned forward even more, "Speak freely child, we would never betray your confidence, I swear it."

Sansa pursed her lips and looked down, for a moment Margaery was sure that the girl would give them nothing more. But then a tear fell from her cheek and she spoke again. "A monster," she whispered. Then she looked up, her voice stronger, "Joffrey is a monster. He lied about the butcher's boy and made Father kill my wolf." Margaery and her grandmother exchanged a look, they had no idea what the girl was saying, but she continued, "And when I displease him, he has the Kingsguard beat me. He's evil and cruel, my Lady. And the queen as well."

Lady Olenna nodded as she turned to look at Margaery, her eyes heavy with disappointment. "Ah," she said slowly. "That's a pity."

"Please don't stop the wedding," the girl pleaded desperately. Margaery snorted, she would be queen. Her father had married her to a man who had no interest in women to make it happen. And now she would be married to a monster. There was no stopping it. No matter what Sansa Stark told them. The girl did not need to worry.

"Have no fear," her grandmother soothed her, "The Lord Puff fish of Highgarden is determined that Margaery shall be queen. And the word of a Tyrell is worth more than all the gold in Casterly Rock. Even so, we thank you for the truth child."

She still looked like she was going to cry. Margaery glanced at her grandmother and the old woman nodded. Sansa Stark had been set aside by the king so that he could marry Margaery, but it was clear that King's Landing was not safe place for the girl. They would help her. They would help her leave it. And help her find a husband, one who would be much more gentle than Joffrey. Her grandmother had been the one to suggest Loras. And it was perfect, she had seen the way Sansa looked at her brother, it would be easy for the girl to love him. And he would be kind to her. And once the war was over they would head to Winterfell and be wardens of the North. As far as her grandmother was concerned, it would be a victory for everyone concerned.

Except the Lannisters.

She leaned closer to the girl and smiled, "Sansa," she said, then she paused. "Can I call you Sansa? I do hope we can be friends?" the girl nodded, so desperate for friends in the Red Keep that Margaery was sure that she would have befriended the fool Butterbumps if given the option. "Would you like to visit Highgarden? Now that it has gotten colder the autumn flowers are in bloom and it is simply beautiful. There are groves and fountains, and singers every night at court. We have the best horses and pleasure boats that sail on the Mander. Do you hawk, Sansa?"

"A little," the girl admitted with a nod. Despite herself she was smiling. Margaery smiled back, she knew that she had painted a very pretty picture of Highgarden. She knew the girl would love it.

"You will love Highgarden as I do," she promised her. "I know it. And once you see it you will never want to leave. Perhaps you won't have to."

The girl's eyebrows raised at that, she was intrigued. "Hush my sweet," Lady Olenna scolded her, though she smiled. "Sansa has not even said if she wants to visit and you already have her married."

"Oh I do want to visit," Sansa argued with a nod. "But the queen would never allow it." She paused for a moment, the last thing that Lady Olenna had said finally sinking in. "Married?" she asked, looking between Margaery and her grandmother. "To whom?"

"To my grandson," Lady Olenna told her.

"Loras?" Sansa asked, unable to hide her excitement as she looked between the two women.

Margaery smiled, this was easier than she and her grandmother had expected. "Would you like that, Sansa?" she asked. "I've never had a sister, only brothers. But if you were to marry Loras than we would not only be friends, but sisters. Please say yes, please say that you will consent to marry my brother?"

Sansa nodded, "Yes," she told them, more tears coming to her eyes, though these ones were from happiness, Margaery was sure of it. "But when will we marry?"

"Soon," Margaery told her with a smile and a soft squeeze on her arm. "Once I am married to Joffrey you will go to Highgarden. My grandmother will take you. Right Grandmother?"

They both turned to Lady Olenna. She nodded and smiled a kind smile at Sansa, "I will," she told the sweet girl. "I will indeed."

Author's Note:

Hello dears! How are you this evening?
I hope you're fantastic! Now, I know I ask this every game day ... you can probably guess? Anyone watching the Cavs game tonight? It's playing now and I've got one eye on the television and one eye on my computer.
Fingers crossed for a win!
Any way, did you enjoy this chapter? I hope so. There were a lot of little things that will be BIG things in the future. Did you catch any of them?
If you did, let me know it a review!
If you didn't, still write a review, let me know how you felt about this chapter!
big Big BIG thanks to those of you who reviewed on the last chapter! You are my favorites.

ZabuzasGirl: Glad you enjoyed it! Hope you like this chapter too!

RHatch89: Thank you dear! Fingers crossed that this one was equally as awesome.

POP: Thank you for your advice. But I kind of like the pace it's going at. It's a long haul type story. If it's that dull than you don't have to read it. But it seems to be working for most people.

janaoliver: Well I'm glad I shocked you with my quick update. On my weeks off of work I try to update this story every day. I think it usually ends up being about six days a week, but that's still pretty good. Especially for the size of these chapters. And thank you, it's nice to have the work appreciated, because you're right. I have put a lot of time into this.

That's all I've got for now friends.
See you tomorrow?
Chloe Jane.