"With this kiss, I pledge my love!" Joffrey proclaimed. Reyna rolled her eyes and turned to her brother Loras. He scrunched up as the new couple kissed and shared a disgusted look with his older sister. Everyone began to clap as the two pulled apart. Margaery found Reyna's eye in the crowd and the two shared a smile. Reyna turned to her grandmother and the two shared a calm look. If all went according to plan then Margaery would influence Joffrey to become a better person. It was unlikely, but sometimes miracles happened.
The newlyweds walked down the aisle and as Reyna turned to watch them go she caught Oberyn Martell's eye. He smirked at her knowingly and then turned to Ellaria. They whispered conspiratorially and waved sweetly at her. Reyna waved back, a little confused, but followed her father and grandmother out of the sept.
Reyna admired her work as they came back to the Red Keep courtyard. Everything had been set up to her exact specifications. The long table under the awning where the royal family would sit. The screen imprinted with golden roses and lions. The large open space for dancing and the tables arranged in a consistent pattern so that people could move in and out without any trouble.
"Beautiful sister," Loras smiled as he approached her. Reyna smiled humbly and the two siblings walked to a nearby table. They each grabbed a glass of wine and toasted each other before taking long swills.
"Who would have thought Margaery would be the first?" Loras chuckled as the meandered around the party.
"We all did. She's been planning her wedding since the day she was born," Reyna laughed. Loras excused himself to go talk to some other knights, leaving Reyna all by herself. She spotted Tyrion and his new wife, Sansa Stark, sitting up by the table. Her father and grandmother were both fawning over the newlyweds. Bronn was drinking wine and talking to some on the lesser known lords and Cersei and Tywin were talking to Ellaria and Oberyn.
Reyna refreshed her glass and turned, making eye contact with Jaime Lannister. She was surprised when he smiled and began to approach her. Reyna remembered meeting the Kingslayer when she was younger. He was about twelve years older than she was and was always off playing knight with children his own age. They had met at a party and rumor at the time was that they were to be betrothed. The rumor turned out to be true and for two years they were engaged. Jaime had been her first kiss and one of her best friends for a time.
Reyna had heard the rumors about him and his twin sister and honestly she believed them. Jaime and Cersei always had an extremely close relationship so it wasn't hard to think the worst of them. She had talked to Jaime in ages though and so she was surprised at how comfortable their conversation came.
"Congratulations my lady," he smiled. His smile was infectious and Reyna soon found herself giving him a large grin.
"Thank you Ser Jaime. I just hope my wedding is this elegant," she laughed.
"Only the best for the beautiful Tyrell girls," he chuckled. His green eyes sparkled and Reyna felt her stomach twist up. Jaime had been her first crush and she thought she had gotten over it.
"I was sorry to hear about your hand," she frowned and glanced down at his new golden appendage. Jaime looked down as well and turned his wrist so that the gold caught the sunlight.
"Very unfortunate that they had to take my sword hand," he sighed. Without thinking Reyna reached out and brushed her fingers against the polished metal. It was cold and smooth to the touch but detailed with intricate swirls and a tiny lion on the back of it.
"All hardships will be rewarded," she said with a small smile.
"Then I plan on being rewarded greatly," he smirked and shifted an inch closer to her. Reyna blushed and looked down at her feet. She opened her mouth to say something else but was cut off by the sound of someone saying her name.
"Ser Joran!" Reyna explained happily. Jaime turned and bowed his head slightly to the guest, Joran doing the same.
"Jaime this is Ser Joran Baxter. Joran this is Ser Jaime Lannister, King Joffrey's Uncle." Reyna introduced them with a smile, glad for Joran's interruption.
"Ah, I've been wanting to meet the Kingslayer for some time now," Joran smirked. Reyna frowned and threw him a reproachful look. She had always hated that nickname. Aerys was mad and deserved what he got.
"If you'll excuse me. Goodbye Lady Reyna," Jaime said, bowing to her respectfully. Reyna bowed her head back and watched him go.
"Some party," Joran observed as they walked around the perimeter of the dance floor. Already people were drunkenly dancing and laughing with each other. It seemed fun but she had already promised her brother the first dance.
"I hope you are enjoying the festivities," she smiled. Joran smiled back and grabbed her elbow to stop her walking. She looked at him curiously, not exactly knowing what to expect.
"Do you have any plans for marriage?" He asked quite suddenly. Reyna raised a single eyebrow, both intrigued by his question and peeved by his intentions.
"My marriage is a matter for the king now. I'm sister to the new queen so I cannot marry whomever I wish," Reyna explained, slipping into her courtier voice. True Joran was an attractive man, but he was from an unknown house and wouldn't have been a prospect even before Margaery's marriage.
"Is there any way to convince them…?" Joran leaded. Reyna felt anger rise in her. Who was this unknown knight trying to persuade her into marriage? She had dinner with him once and now he wanted her to run away with him?
"Convince them of what exactly, Ser Joran? If I marry without the kings permission I will be imprisoned and you killed for treason. And who says marrying you is what I want? From our two interactions I can honestly tell you I have no intention of marrying you," she snarled, feeling the venom rise in the back of her throat. Joran's eyes widened and he took a step away from her.
"No need for harsh words my lady," he snapped.
"I'm a rose, Ser Joran. Roses come with thorns," she growled before stalking away from him. Loras must have seen their interaction because he came racing towards her.
"Everything alright sister?" He asked tentatively. Reyna took a long, soothing breath and painted a smile on her lips.
"Everything is perfect brother. Dance with me," she ordered, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the throng of people before he could protest. The smile on Reyna's face soon became genuine as she and Loras twirled around on the dance floor. By the time the song was over they were sweaty and red faced.
"Let's drink sister," Loras suggested. Reyna followed her brother and they each grabbed another glass. Reyna watched her sister and her new good brother as they sat and talked at the high table. Joffrey was enthralled with whatever Margaery was saying and looked very much in love. Reyna hoped that they would be happy, but she hoped for her sisters happiness more than anything.
Reyna turned back to her brother but saw that he was making seductive eyes at someone. She followed his eyes and found him watching Ellaria and Oberyn. Ellaria was feeding Oberyn berries and Oberyn was giving Loras one of his best lust filled looks.
"Really Loras?" Reyna scoffed. Loras turned to his sister and raised a quizzical brow.
"If you won't take him sister, then I will," he smirked before walking away. Reyna turned her eyes back to Oberyn and now found him turning his lust filled gaze on her. He lazily waved at her and Reyna rolled her eyes before stalking away.
She found her brother again at their table near the stage. There were five chairs in total; one for Reyna, one for Loras, one for Podrick Payne, one for Bronn, and one for Ser Joran Baxter. Luckily it seemed that Ser Joran had found other seating arrangements for himself. Loras and Podrick were sitting together talking about swords when Reyna approached them. When Podrick noticed her he stood and gave her a slight bow.
Gods was Podrick adorable. Reyna had always thought him cute and boyish. Tyrion and Bronn had told her that apparently all the whores in Littlefinger's brothel found him to be a sex god. Reyna was tempted to find out if this was true, but he was just a little too shy for her.
"Have either of you seen Bronn?" She asked curiously. Podrick turned and pointed towards the fountain. Reyna nodded her thanks and walked away, making sure to give her hips an extra little sway for Podrick's benefit.
People bowed and congratulated Reyna as she passed and soon her cheeks hurt from all the fake smiles she kept giving. But soon her smile dropped when she saw Bronn. He was leaning against a table close to the fountain, wine goblet in hand, clearly flirting with Ellaria Sand. Now Reyna wasn't suddenly jealous because of her feelings for Bronn, she was jealous because she didn't like sharing her toys. She was contradictory that way. She didn't want to be tied down, but the men she slept with couldn't sleep with anyone else.
"Bronn!" Reyna snapped a little more venomously than she would have liked. Both Bronn and Ellaria turned to look at her. Ellaria smiled sweetly at her and Reyna managed to pass off a kind smile to her. Bronn approached her, a sly smirk on his lips.
"Somethin' botherin' you love?" He chuckled. Reyna rolled her eyes and went to walk away but Bronn grabbed her wrist and pulled her across the party towards the hedges that marked off the garden. He quickly pulled her out of sight and pressed her against the wall of the garden shed.
"Don't like me flirtin' with the Dornish woman?" He teased, tracing the plunging neckline of her dress. Reyna smacked his hand away and he chuckled.
"Now ya know how I feel," he whispered, licking his lips seductively. A smile crept across Reyna's lips and she snaked her arms around Bronn's neck.
"I guess I'll have to be extra nice to you then," she purred before pressing her lips to his. Bronn's hands left trails of fire as he traced her body. Reyna let her head fall back as his lips followed the slim curve of her neck.
"Sounds like they're making speeches," Reyna gasped, trying to move away from Bronn's intoxicating kisses.
"Just one more," he murmured against her skin. He gave her one last lingering kiss before pulling away and giving her ass a sharp slap. Reyna gave a quick shriek and made her way back towards the party. Bronn went to go sit at their table but Reyna came up beside Jaime Lannister to watch the speeches.
"That's terrible," Reyna remarked at Joffrey poured wine on Tyrion's head.
"He doesn't deserve it," Jaime replied, trying to hide the growl in his voice. Reyna gave his wrist a reassuring squeeze and he looked down at her, giving her a small smile.
"I've wanted to talk to you for awhile," he smiled, color coming up on his cheeks.
"About what?" Reyna asked curiously. Jaime opened his mouth to speak but at that moment Reyna heard her sister scream.
"He's choking!" Margaery yelled. Both Jaime and Reyna looked up and saw Joffrey staggering, clutching at his throat. He fell down the steps and landed face first on the ground. Reyna took off immediately towards the stage, Jaime right behind her. Reyna rushed past Joffrey and ran up to her sister. Margaery clung to her as they watched Jaime try to comfort Joffrey. The young kings face was bright red and slowly turning purple. Foam and spit flew from his mouth and his eyes were bloodshot.
"My son!" Cersei screamed and raced towards the young lion. She pushed Jaime away and turned him over so that Joffrey was in her lap. All anyone could do was watch as the life drained from Joffrey's eyes.
Reyna had never seen the queen cry before and for a moment it made her seem more human. Cersei looked around her, fear and anger in her emerald eyes. She finally settled on her youngest brother, Tyrion. He was reaching down and picking up Joffrey's discarded goblet, searching it for any clues.
"He did this! He killed my son! Take him! TAKE him! TAKE HIM!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. Immediately three members of the Kingsguard approached Tyrion and cornered him in. Since he was a smaller man they saw no need for brute force.
Reyna made a move to go to him but her younger sister put a hand on her, shaking her head. Reyna was forced to watch as one of her best friends was taken away by guards. They were probably going to throw him in a black cell. Reyna would go to him as soon as she could. Tyrion was innocent, she was sure of it.
"Let's go Margaery," Reyna whispered and led her sister towards their father. The last thing Cersei wanted to see were the golden roses planting themselves among her lions.