Chapter 2

The death of Prince Aegon shocked everyone, including me, for there had been no indication at all of the cause of it. The King summoned me after three days of subjecting himself to isolation. Already, I was seeing less and less of him – as a sudden growth spurt had made it awkward for me to continue to serve as a cupbearer and I had been relieved of that duty. And Aerys' primary purpose of always having me nearby was to annoy Tywin Lannister, so when Tywin returned to Casterly Rock after the tourney with his family, Aerys' need of having me physically around diminished and he only cared to see me if I had anything to report.

That morning, he had a single question for me: Had I seen or heard anything unusual? To both our dismay, I shook my head in the negative - I knew Prince Aegon's death was fated - he was one of the three options of a mortal host that the Master of Death had and he had chosen me - or rather, what I used to be - and as a result, Prince Aegon was fated to die. Oddly, the only emotion I could feel about that was relief. I know I wasn't the same person I had been before the spirit merger; nor was I the Master of Death; but rather an amalgamation of both. But I was alive, and for that I rejoiced in my heart and mind.

The King dismissed me and did not call for me again for such a long time that I started fearing he was beginning to be suspicious of me as well. But there was nothing I could do except carry on with my life and my duties.

One day, when Lily was setting out dinner and Ser James had gone out drinking in King's Landing - I turned to her and said. "Join me." She looked at me with a confused expression. "That haunch of venison looks delicious but is too big just for one - I would hate for it to go to waste."

Lily hesitated. "It would not be appropriate for me to sit at your table, Master Harren."

"Don't be silly," I said. "I am a bastard; you are a maid. There is no reason why we cannot be friends and friends can dine together."

She looked anxious but when I kept pressing on, she relented and took a seat. But she only took a very tiny portion of the food.

"If you could ever leave this place," I asked, making conversation. "What would you most like to do?"

Lily smiled. "That's an easy question," she said. "My happiest memories are from childhood helping my mother with her bakery. Even with Petunia - before she sold the bakery and ran away with all the gold - I still have some fond memories. That is my answer - I would like to start my own bakery." But then she sighed. "But it is a dream that will never come true. The best I can hope is to perhaps one day be given an opportunity to assist the head cook and maybe get a role in the kitchen." She looked at me. "What about you, Master Harren? What are your dreams?"

What were my dreams? To rise above my status and build a name worthy of the great powers I possessed. To win the hearts of pretty maidens and have them yearn for me. To be counted amongst the greatest knights and warriors that the realm had ever seen.

But before I could respond to her, the door opened and Ser James stepped inside, walking unevenly, as he looked rather drunk. Lily immediately sprang out of her seat and took a more deferential stance. Ser James blinked a few times and then looked angrily at Lily. "You have r-ruined me," he slurred as he raised a finger. He took a few steps and stumbled but I sent a subtle wind blast to help him regain his footing. He raised his other hand with some effort as if counting in his mind and pointed four fingers. "Four maidens - they wanted to see the M-Maidenvault - I could have had any… or all… and that's - that's just t-tonight." He laughed drunkenly and then his gaze fell on me and the table. "Oh, food, goody." He rushed to the table and grabbed what remained of the venison and took a bite from it directly. "Mmm - what d'ya know - I was starving…" He started attacking the venison ravenously.

"Ser James," Lily started - her voice very uneven.

Ser James turned to her, dropping the venison back on the tray. "You - you have ruined me!" he declared, as if just seeing her for the first time. He shook his head. "Like one who has seen the sun can find no star bright enough - I now find no joy looking at any maiden unless she be you."

Lily opened her mouth but no words came out - she was looking at Ser James with a strange expression. Ser James moved towards her, unable to take two straight steps, and he took her hand and stared into her face. "Would that I could stare this face for the rest of my life? I would be the luckiest man that ever lived." He raised her hand to his lips and gently kissed and let go.

Lily lowered her face. "If you command me to your bed -" her voice shook with self-disgust.

I sent a wind swipe, tripping Ser James and he fell down face first. Lily immediately knelt to help him. As he got to his feet, he looked confused for a few moments and he blinked a few times. I took a goblet of water and walked towards him. "Drink," I said. When he looked like he was going to protest, I sent a tiny wind swipe up his nostril. He gasped and spluttered and grudgingly took the goblet and finished it. I led him to a seat. "Now, sit." He stank of ale - his clothes, his breath, his hair - everything stank. I refilled his goblet and forced him to drink again.

After a few minutes, the glazed expression on Ser James's face turned less vacant as the food and water finally cut through the alcohol a little bit. He looked at both of us and then frowned before turning to me. "Harren - why does she look so scared? Did you hurt her?" He then looked aghast as he asked in a quiet whisper, "Did I hurt her?" He was still drunk but had regained just enough of his faculties to be more aware of what was going on around him.

"You professed your strong desire for her," I said. "She asked if you were commanding her to your bed. Then, you tripped and fell."

Ser James' eyes widened in shock. He jumped out of his seat and looked at Lily intently. "Please pardon my behaviour, m'lady," he said, sounding contrite. "My current state may not suggest so but while I have seduced many a fair lass and frequented brothels as well, I have not ever - and I shall never - command an unwilling woman to my bed. Please do not look at me with frightened eyes - it hurts my heart terribly when you do so."

Lily's lips trembled and she nodded slowly.

"I think we should all get some sleep," I said finally. "I will help you to your chamber, Ser James."

He looked at me with gratitude and as I helped him to his chambers, he looked at me. "Did you make me fall?" he asked.

I nodded. "I did not know how you would have responded."

Ser James looked at me silently. "I am not sure if I know that either. Thank you, Harry." He closed his eyes.

But as the days progressed, I saw a shift in Lily's treatment of Ser James. While she had always been diligent and conscientious, now there was just a note of tenderness when she looked at Ser James or responded to him. For his part, Ser James had stopped going out to the taverns and focused his entire time in the Red Keep. Once, I even saw him give Lily a bouqet of flowers but she had laughed and said a maid couldn't bring flowers back to her quarters so instead she put them on a vase in the Maidenvault - and that became a frequent pattern as the Maidenvault began filling up with flowers. But despite Lily never taking the flowers back, every time I saw her look at them, there would be a smile on her face.

That also resulted in a change in my relationship with Lily - I would often invite her to join us for meals and increasingly, there would be fewer objections from her. Ser James also made it more of a point to be present during mealtimes and we would often joke, talk and have a laugh about something or other. All in all, I was quite enjoying the company of the two of them.

One day, as I returned from my morning lessons with grandmother, I saw Lily and James walk upstairs - I wouldn't have followed them if they were going to Ser James' chamber but they went even further up, so turning invisible I followed to see what they were up to. They went all the way up to the very top of the Maidenvault.

The top chamber - the solar - was completely empty and had massive open windows that gave it a very airy and open feel. From one side, you could see the sea and the view was rather peaceful. Ser James had prepared a basket of lunch - bread, cheeses and fruitcake with a jug of wine. I only paused long enough to hear Lily laugh at some joke made by Ser James and when I saw they were truly just having a nice, romantic and relaxed picnic, I left.

I didn't hear from them at all that day - and the next morning, when I was sitting at an empty breakfast table, I saw Lily rush out of Ser James' chamber wearing the same clothes she had worn the previous day. She had an alarmed look on her face but it couldn't break through the happy smile as she rushed to get the breakfast. I simply raised an eyebrow and when she blushed, I simply gave her a knowing smile.

Who knows, perhaps there would be a counterpart of Harry Potter in this world after all.

Grandmother's death took us all by shock. I hadn't expected it but one day she went to sleep and the next morning, she was gone. I couldn't believe it was natural - she was still so very young - only just touching on 50 years old - but then I reminded myself that this was a medieval time where 50 would be considered quite the age. There were many - mainly amongst the nobility - who lived many more decades - but 50 would not be considered young. Besides, Grand Maester Pycelle conducted a thorough check and announced that there was absolutely no signs of poison or foul play.

That saddened me - as I stood by myself at her funeral to pay my last respects. King Aerys had been correct - even she had never expected me to rise above my birth but she had brought me here and she had personally educated me for almost a year. For that I would treasure her memory.

She wasn't the only person I was about to lose. My time with Ser James was also about to come to a stop as he had already delayed going on his travels and decided to stay a full year – the official reason being he wanted to get me sufficiently up to standard so I could practise on my own – but I had seen a red-haired maid creeping out of his chambers at the crack of dawn almost on a frequent basis now - and I knew the real reason for his delay was Lily, not me.

"Would you take me as your squire one day?" I asked curiously as Ser James and I paused to catch our breaths after a particularly intense morning of training.

Ser James considered my question for a few moments and then he shook his head. "No, I shan't."

I was taken aback for I thought he liked me and all the insecurity of being rejected by my father for being a bastard returned in my heart. "Why wouldn't you?" I asked sharply. "I nearly defeated you in our final duel there."

That was true. Although Ser James could have wiped the floor clean with me if we were just using our physical strength and skill with the sword but when he permitted using wind, I was so much more powerful than him, I could easily seize control of any wind channel he was creating and use it against him. I was also learning to charge my movements with wind to increase the speed and strength that it neutralised the difference in age and physical strength.

"That is precisely the reason why I said no," said Ser James. "Look, Harry," he said, a nickname he had started using when we were in private, "it would be an honour to guide you in your journey to knighthood but alas, soon there will not be anything left for me to teach you. There is nothing you would gain by being my squire. You are meant for much greater things."

I sighed. I could see the wisdom in his words but part of me would have preferred to just be Ser James Potter's squire, to travel Westeros in a bid to locate the best taverns and the prettiest wenches in the land.

"I will miss you," I said, for that was our final day before he left. "Although I daresay there is a redhead maid who will miss you even more than me."

Ser James blushed but didn't say anything.

"Perhaps, one day you will make an honest woman of her," I continued teasingly, "or more likely, she will make an honest man of you."

James turned to me with heavyset eyes. "Alas," he sighed. "My fate is not in my hands and I shall eventually marry the woman my uncle chooses for me. As I am his heir and the future Lord Potter, it would not be appropriate for me to be married to a mere maid."

We heard a crashing sound and turned in horror to the doorway where Lily had just come in to hear our words and the jug of water slipped from her fingers and a look of utter heartbreak was on her face.

"Lily," Ser James tried to get up.

"No," she said, and I had to marvel how she was keeping her voice calm despite the streams of tears on her face. "I knew – some part of me knew that nothing more would come of this but…" And the next moment, she wiped her face and with shaking fingers, she started cleaning the mess. "If you will need anything more from me, I will be in the kitchens, Master Harry, Ser James." She looked at me and bowed and then she bowed to Ser James very formally, but without meeting his eyes, and then she turned around and left.

I looked at Ser James with an exasperated expression. "You should go after her."

Ser James sighed. "You heard her," he said, although his voice also sounded broken. "She doesn't want to see me now." He sighed again. "Besides, my ship leaves at dawn and I haven't finished packing my things – this journey couldn't have come at a better time." He tried to smile at me but the expression was rather strained. "Do not forget to practice everything I have shown you, even the wind kicks you are not so fond of."

Only a day after Ser James' departure a new maid was assigned to the Maidenvault – a plain-faced girl slightly dim but utterly loyal to the steward of the Red Keep who wouldn't answer any of my questions, and would spend as little time as possible in the Maidenvault, so I had to rely on my spying to discover what had happened to Lily.

And what I learnt stunned me.

Lily had been dismissed from service upon being discovered that she was pregnant. The fate of maids in the royal palace was very deterministic. They were supposed to look pretty and get the work done quietly without any fuss. If someone powerful took them to bed, they usually had no other choice unless they had someone even more powerful as a benefactor but they were always supposed to take the adequate precautions so as not to conceive a child, and if they did get with child, their days in the royal palace was over. After all, how would they get the job done to the same quality when they were pregnant and later had a young child to look after?

I was annoyed, not just at the silly rules and at Ser James but also at Lily. I had thought towards the end we were becoming friends and for her to just leave without saying goodbye was a little hurtful.

So, I decided to take matters into my own hands and I set out one night, in the cover of darkness and within my armour of invisibility. Several of the secret passages led beyond the Red Keep and so I was able to get away without any hindrance.

Invisibility was very useful indeed - but I had found during my time as the king's spy that the secret passages gave me an advantage that invisibility didn't - the ability to avoid closed doors and locked gates.

Flea Bottom was a maze of twisty, unpaved alleys, unkempt and with an even worse stench than the rest of King's Landing. I heard someone in court describe it as the smell of pigsties and stables and tanner's sheds mixed in with the smell of winesinks and whorehouses. When I first received the information, I had dreaded she would have been forced to work in a whorehouse but she wasn't quite that desperate yet.

Dropping my invisibility, I walked into the alehouse and some eyes fell on me for a child my age had no business being there.

"Master Harry!" Lily was shocked and she rushed out from behind the bar to come to me.

As I saw her, I felt a sadness in my heart. Her beauty was marred by exhaustion and the lines beneath her eyes had grown significantly while her hair, once pretty and lustrous, was already unkempt and rough. She wore an apron that stank of old ale and gravy.

"You shouldn't be here," she sounded outraged.

"Neither should you," I pointed out.

"I am – I was just a maid," she said. "How can I not belong here so long as I can get honest work?"

"In that case, I am a bastard, and I don't belong anywhere at all," I said. "I want to apologise on behalf of Ser James. He is a fool and he doesn't see what he is giving up."

Lily opened her mouth but then she closed it again. A few moments later, she smiled sadly at me. "I have made my peace with his decision," she said finally. "What we had was no different to what I have seen happen time and again in the royal court – some lordling takes a young maid to bed and the silly maid fills her head with fairy tales of a different life that she was never born for. I thought I was different… he was different… but in the end, we were no different to the others."

"There is one difference." I lowered my eyes to look at her belly. There was very little visible signs yet but she turned red slightly. "You carry his heir."

"I carry a bastard," she replied scathingly and then she cringed. "I am sorry."

"No offence taken," I said. "I too have made peace with my life. Look, Lily, I will come straight to it. You cannot have your old life back and James is being a twat so you can't have what you deserve… but I want to think we became friends and I can't see you like this."

"Of course, we are friends," she said and leaned closer to kiss my forehead. "I have missed you so much since leaving the Red Keep."

"Yet, you didn't come to say goodbye," I pointed out, making her turn a shade of guilt. "Anyway, I have an offer for you. Something not quite what you deserve but at least better than this."

She looked perplexed. "What offer?"

"I have purchased a lot in the Street of Flour that now has a sign saying Lily's," I said. "All it needs is someone to run it, preferably with the name Lily with experience of running a bakery."

Lily's eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock. "You must be joking."

I shook my head. "I made a lot of gold by winning bets during the tourney," I said. "But I don't really have any need of it so I decided to invest it in a friend who I believe in. There's also ten gold dragons for any start-up costs but after that you are on your own." In a way it made some twisted sense - the winnings came out of my bet on Ser James so it felt right to use it in this manner.

"You can't do this!" she said. "It's a lot of gold. I can't just take it from you."

"You are not," I said. "I am giving it to you. But not freely."

She looked at me curiously.

"I will write up a contract," I said. "The property is in my name and I will also keep half ownership of the business and so you will keep half of all profits, after costs, expenses and salaries, in trust for me. I am not doing this out of charity, Lily, or just to help a friend. I see this as a get-rich-scheme. What do you say?"

Lily was silent.

"Okay, in addition, I want one more thing," I said. "If you give birth to a boy, I want you to name him after me. Harry for Harren. What do you say?"

Lily smiled and nodded.

The opening of Lily's was a spectacular success. I had spread the rumour amongst the Red Keep serving staff that the Queen's former chambermaid Lily was opening a bakery and to my surprise, on the day of the opening, an important visitor arrived at the bakery.

Ser Harlan Grandison of the Kingsguard entered the bakery to the amazement of the smallfolk and he inspected the lot and the kitchen for hygiene and then he ordered a sample of everything. "The Queen tires of castle food," he said. "As she is unable to journey here on her own, she will place an order for delivery for herself and her companions if you could arrange on a weekly basis to Maegor's Holdfast?"

"I can deliver it," I offered.

So, the news spread that Lily's was delivering to the Queen and her ladies and her popularity grew as all other rich folk wanted to say they also ordered from Lily's.

I also enjoyed my weekly visits to Lily's to pick up the new delivery for the Queen and to check on her progress and occasionally make suggestions to add to her repertoire, such as treacle tarts, blueberry muffins and cheesecake, which were making a complete splash in the market. And each time, she would send new samples for the Queen and the weekly order would keep growing in quantity.

One day, Lily had a coinbag ready for me. "Your half of the profits for the month," she said proudly, happy to return something to me.

"How much is in there?"

"Five gold dragons," she said. "I know it isn't everything but it is a start."

"Five gold dragons," I muttered as I emptied the coins on the counter. "Hire someone to help you with the work." I glanced at her belly, which was beginning to show. "The business will suffer if you suddenly stop working without any replacement to pick up at the same quality." The look of affection she gave me was more than suficient profit for me.

The next week, Lily was not alone in the bakery but I was not prepared to see who were with her. While there was a somewhat familiar looking brown haired woman working in the kitchen area, it was the bushy haired girl behind the counter that caught my attention. Her face was as pretty as I remembered from my memory of another life although I had forgotten her buckteeth, which I felt rather added to her charm.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

Hermione – for I had no doubt this was her – looked to be slightly older than me but not by much and seemed very confident standing behind the counter.

"Oh, Harren, come here!" Lily called out when she popped her head back to see who had entered the bakery. "Let me introduce you to Jane and her daughter Hermione. They will be helping me out at the bakery."

"Pleased to meet you," I said distractedly, struggling to tear my gaze from Hermione, who was looking a little bit uncomfortable at my scrutiny.

Lily told me about them. Jane and her husband David Granger had just arrived from Old Town. David was a healer who specialised in childbirth and had arrived in King's Landing to see if the King would be willing to retain him but Grand Maester Pycelle had dismissed him without a proper interview or discussion, so now David was making ends meet by helping the Smallfolk and accepting what little payment they could afford so Jane was also looking for work to supplement the family income. Lily met them when she was seeking out a healer to know what she should be doing or not be doing with her upcoming childbirth and when she heard about Jane, she was quick to offer her employment at the bakery.

In a few weeks, we already cemented a firm friendship. I increased the frequency of my visits and would often engage in discussions with Hermione, who I learnt had taught herself to read and write from their time in Old Town and would eagerly collect any books the Citadel disposed of in the trash for being worn out copies.

Initially, our friendship was based entirely on my awareness of her love for knowledge and so I started bouncing off things I had learnt from grandmother past her - and surprisingly, despite not having any tutor she seemed to know much more than I did but there were certain key gaps in her knowledge that I could supplement. That resulted in a very quick start to friendship.

"Do you believe in magic?" I asked one day. The two of us were sitting outside, on a ledge, looking at the busy street go by. The shop was being managed by Jane and Lily, who were always fine for the two of us to go away for an hour or so, as both knew how friendless we were in the city.

"That's a difficult question to answer," she said. "The history of Westeros has so many accounts of legends that could only realistically be attributed to magic. Bran the Builder, Azor Ahai, Durran the Storm King… and then we have the Children of the Forest, greenseers and skinchangers… the people of Essos also speak of magic – there's a house of wizards somewhere far in the east and the Red Priests of R'hllor can do some magical feats. And of course, the dragonlords." She paused. "So, yes, I do believe in magic and that it existed in the past… but for some reason unknown to me, it has faded away from the face of the known world."

"What do you know about the first Storm King Durran?" I asked. "What magic could he do?"

"No, instead of him, I will tell you of the second Storm King, also named Durran, son of the one you spoke of, but also son of Elenei, daughter of the Wind Goddess," said Hermione. "One of the books thrown away by the Citadel had an account of the mightiest weapons forged by man. This includes a chapter on Valyrian steel swords - which they believed could only be forged in dragonfire. There was a chapter on Dawn - the greatsword of House Dayne that they made from the heart of a shooting star. In this book, there was a mention of the Hammer of Durran, son of Elenei, which he forged on the funeral pyre of Elenei and Durran, who died as they had lived, together. He named the hammer Fury and legend had it that the hammer gave its wielder superhuman strength, invulnerability in battle and the greatest Storm Kings could even use Fury's power to summon lightning."

"What happened to the hammer?"

"It was supposed to be passed down from father to son for many generations until the Storm King Durran XIII used it for great evil when they subjugated the wild houses of Cracklaw Point. The men were slaughtered and the women were raped and the children enslaved to carry out the whims of the Storm King and his vassals. When the Storm King raised Fury to strike down the leader of the wild houses, the hammer flew out of his hand. The voice of wind spoke in rage with words that all mortal men could comprehend – the Storm King was unworthy of the power of wind and only he who was worthy would be able to locate and wield the hammer. Then, the hammer flew away and since then it has not been found."

"I would like to find it," I said.

"You think you are worthy?" Hermione grinned at me.

"That depends on what you mean by worthy," I said. "Many generations of Storm Kings used it for battle to kill their enemies and conquer their lands and I guess the evil that follows war must have occurred then too. Why did that change during the reign of Durran the XIII? What did he do that was different to his predecessors? We need to know what made him unworthy and then we can understand who is worthy."

"I wish I could tell you but I do not have any more books to do any research," said Hermione.

I sighed. "I will see if I can find anything in the Red Keep." When Hermione's eyes perked up with a hungry look, I laughed. "Okay, I will bring them for you too, if I can."

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she grabbed me in a quick embrace. "I haven't read anything new in so long."

When she was about to let go of me, I held on and kept the embrace for a few moments longer with one hand on the back of her head. Eventually, I let go and Hermione was looking at me with a strange look and I could feel from the wind that her breathing had become very rapid.

One day, I was practising with my sword when I saw something unusual. Prince Rhaegar Targaryen arrived at the training area with Ser Barristan Selmy, Ser Gwayne Gaunt and Ser Jonothor Darry of the Kingsguard behind him. I was surprised because Prince Rhaegar had never shown any interest in learning how to fight – his clear preference for the first 14 years of his life had been books and music - and of course a pretty maiden - but never had he shown any interest in learning how to fight. Now, for whatever reason, he had come out to the training area.

"Clear off, boy," Ser Jonothor yelled towards me, even though I was simply minding my own business in one corner with a wooden rotating target. "His Highness will be using this space now."

I frowned and my confused look gave some of them pause. I saw Ser Gwayne turn to his colleague with a scowl. "There is plenty space here for a dozen princelings to be trained, Jon," he said.

"Aye, a dozen princelings," said Ser Jonothor, "but scant space for the crown prince and a bastard."

When Ser Barristan was about to join in the protest, I decided it wasn't worth it to make enemies for such a stupid reason. "It's okay, I am done," I called out and sheathed my practice sword.

As I was going, Ser Jonothor called out, "And find somewhere else from tomorrow." I turned around pulling wind to give retribution but by then everyone was focused on Prince Rhaegar, so I released my grasp on wind and left them. Some battles just weren't worth fighting.

After a quick breakfast, having nothing better to do, I resumed my spying duties. The Maidenvault was very empty these days, now that Ser James and Lily were no longer here. Usually, a maid left a very basic breakfast in the morning while I was training and so I picked up a chunk of bread and nibbled on it as I pulled out the secret doorway and entered the catacombs of the Red Keep.

And I was instantly rewarded.

The castle staff was buzzing with gossip that morning. News had arrived that Lady Joanna Lannister had died in childbirth, giving birth to a hideous monster with tails and lion's claws. No, no, said another, who was certain they heard the Grand Maester tell the king the babe was born with a giant's head with beard. Another claimed those were all absurd tales and the babe was born with tiny legs and mismatched eyes, green and black, whilst another said the babe had both male and female genitals.

I raced down the passages to find the King who was in the Great Hall sitting on the Iron Throne. His eyes had a strange glint - one could say he looked slightly crazed - and I felt bad. The man had lost the great love of his life not too long after the death of his son. How many more tragedies would he face?

"Long have I seen in visions from the Seven the birth of the deformed one," one doomsayer was hissing out loud for the entire court to hear. "Great doom do I predict with this birth, a time of famine, plague and war. Heed my words, your grace, and take precautions."

The King waved his hand and the doomsayer lowered his head and another took his place. "What say you?"

"The babe shall be named Lord Tywin's Bane, or more aptly, Lionsbane, for he breaks the illusion of invulnerability of House Lannister," said the man.

The King smiled, although perhaps I was the only one who could sense his smile was a front, a cover against the inner turmoil he was going through, with news of the death of Lady Joanna.

"Yes, yes," said Aerys, for the whole court to hear. "This is naught else but divine punishment by the Seven to teach him some humility at last. For Lannister sought to make himself greater than the King and that is only permitted by the gods." He raised his hand. "I am tired, the royal court shall reconvene tomorrow."

I took a deep breath as I heard those words. No doubt they would spread across King's Landing by the end of the day and before the turn of the moon, they would have spread across Westeros to reach the ears of Tywin Lannister, the man who had orchestrated the complete annihilation of Houses Reyne and Tarbeck for humiliating House Lannister.

Nothing good could come out of this, I mused, but what could I do.

But something else plagued my mind. Around nine moons had passed since the day I had found Lady Joanna in the arms of the King. Was this deformed child of Targaryen blood? Or was I just overthinking and the babe was conceived of the many nights when Tywin fucked his wife, not the one occasion when King Aerys did so?

As the days progressed, I saw a shift in the King. He was drinking thrice as much as he used to and he had thrice increased the number of his mistresses, and every single one of them was blonde with big breasts, and I could see with one or two of them, there was a distinct resemblance to Lady Joanna Lannister.

"Sire," I made my presence aware to the King, who was in a drunken state of stupor.

The King turned to me with a start. "You, boy, you are still alive."

"Forgive me, sire, I haven't had anything to report and you had told me to stay away until your summons," I said.

"But you are here now so you have something to report?"

I nodded. "One of your mistresses, Lady Selina, has been overheard to say she has greater favour with you than the Queen and if she can give you two or three heirs, you might raise her status to equal the Queen herself."

"And?"

I hesitated. The old Aerys would have been enraged at the thought of someone daring to suggest they could be raised to equal status as a Targaryen.

"Do not waste my time with foolish tales of gossiping women, boy, or I will have you whipped!" he snapped at me. "Begone."

I hastily retreated from the King's chamber, closing the secret entrance behind me. He was becoming increasingly more volatile and harder to predict. Only the other day, he had ordered a visiting knight's tongue to be torn out with hot pincers for he had been overheard to say better a deformed son than a dead one.

But the one ray of light in my otherwise bleak days was my weekly visit to Lily's. Lily's pregnant belly was now massive and the birth wasn't far away. But more than Lily, it was Hermione who I longed to see.

"Here," I shoved a bag towards her. "No one will be missing these although I daresay some of them may be useless."

"Don't say that!" Hermione sounded outraged. "No book is useless. There is knowledge in them – perhaps, some may be outdated, but the knowledge of what people believed to be true during their time still gives us a unique perspective of their lives." She picked up a book and read the title with eager eyes. "100 Common Herbs and their Uncommon Uses. This is brilliant. Father might also like to read this. Prophecies That May Yet Come to Pass. Interesting!"

I had acquired both books from Prince Rhaegar's personal collection – pissed off that he had taken over my training time, I had snuck into his private chambers one morning and found it was full of books and musical instruments. So, I stole two books and decided I would steal his thunder by –

"You – what?" Hermione repeated in disbelief.

"I am going to become a fiddler," I told her. "You want to come with me to the market to buy a fiddle?"

"But you don't know anything about music," she said.

I smiled at her mysteriously. Yes, in this life Harren Storm had no experience with music nor did Harry Potter have any in my original life but somewhere along the journey, the Master of Death had lived a life where he had become quite a renowned musician. Guitar had been his favoured musical instrument and I would have to re-learn from the basics but the basic foundation of music was somewhere in my mind as were the building blocks for some of the best melodies from many lifetimes.

I had no doubt that I could eventually outclass Prince Rhaegar as a more accomplished musician.

Soon, I was the proud owner of a brand new violin and I invited Hermione to visit me a few days later to see the progress I had made. At first she had been unsure but her curiosity to see the Red Keep from the inside had won out. Now, she was completely thrilled by my music.

"Your voice is so beautiful," said Hermione, one day.

I had taken her all the way to the top chamber where I had once seen Ser James and Lily have their little picnic. I had planned something similar - except instead of wine, I had juice and instead of bread and cheeses, I had some of Lily's finest cakes.

"Thank you," I said. "It is only polite that I return the complement," I said with a mischievous smile. "Your face, Hermione, is beautiful."

"Stop teasing me," she said.

"I am not," I told her, being completely honest. "You are beautiful - at least to my eyes."

And as time would pass, Hermione wouldn't be the only one who would be mesmerised by my voice and my songs, as many a maid would speak of the haunting melody of the music played and sung by the bastard of Maidenvault, how it was even more touching than the music of Prince Rhaegar.

And honestly all I had done was teach myself how to play the melody of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Stars.

Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who has read and double-thanks to those who have reviewed. I am hoping to get the next chapter within the next few days.