The next week was rather uneventful, and boring. The Kingsroad looked similar everywhere they went and by then Keaira was missing everyone at Winterfell. She never realised how much it would hurt not seeing them every day. Especially Jon. She found herself wondering how he was doing, now she realised he would most likely be at the Wall. She wondered if they were treating him well enough, even though she expected the latter.
"Lady Keaira, may I speak with you?" Jory queried, breaking her out of her thoughts.
"Of course" She smiled at him, as he went to sit next to her.
"I have noticed you have been spending a lot of time with the Imp" Jory exclaimed.
"He has a name" Keaira frowned, not liking Jory's rude tone.
"The Lannister's cannot be trusted" Jory insisted.
"He has not done anything wrong. He has been nothing but kind to me" Keaira retorted.
"They are sly, you may think he is your friend-" Jory started, but she cut him off.
"I thought you were my friend" Keaira stated.
"I am. That is why I am saying this. I worry for you. A girl of your age…can be easily manipulated" Jory explained.
"I am not stupid" Keaira all but growled, angry now.
"That is not what I meant, my Lady" Jory tried to clarify.
"And I am not a Lady" Keaira shook her head, standing up.
"It is not just you that you have to think about. The Starks cannot appear weak, and you are like family to them" Jory went on.
"I would never do anything to hurt them" Keaira glared at him, before rushing away, deeper into the forest.
She hadn't felt so angry for a long time. She knew that Tyrion could be manipulating, but so far, he just seemed lonely. Just like Jon had been when she first arrived at Winterfell. Jory couldn't understand what it felt like to be an outcast. Tyrion could, he seemed to need a friend, and she certainly did. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a scream not far away from her. She looked around and realised that she had been wandering around the forest for a few minutes. She instantly hid behind a tree, thinking perhaps it was bandits that had spotted her. When no one come she carefully approached the area she had heard it coming from. She came to an opening and quickly spotted the Queen and her brother…and the five men with swords that were surrounding them. Keaira noticed the state of undress the pair were both in, with Jaime's trousers and sword flung far away from them. They were defenceless. She pondered on what to do for a moment. The Starks had made it clear that they would lose no sleep if the Lannister's were killed…but she knew she could never let it go if she didn't try to help them.
"It's the Queen, I'm telling you! I saw her once at the palace!" One of the men exclaimed, excitedly.
"The you must be the famous Kingslayer…you don't seem so tough now" Another man mocked, as he circled the pair.
"We should take them…hold them for ransom" The third man suggested.
"I wouldn't mind a go with the Queen first" The fourth men grinned, showing his disgusting rotted teeth.
"Touch her and I'll kill you" Jaime glared at him, standing protectively in front of his sister.
"And how would you do that…without this?" The fifth man finally spoke, approaching the pair, picking up Jaime's sword.
"Gregor Esto" He then said, as Jaime frowned.
"What?" He questioned.
"My brother…you cut him where he stood…he was just trying to feed his family. I'd never forget your face" The man grimaced, as he placed the sword under Jaime's chin.
"My father can pay-" Jaime was cut off as the man kicked him to the ground.
"I don't want you fucking money. I want your head" He shouted, as he raised the sword.
Keaira then jumped into action, as she focused on the hilt of the sword, which instantly began to heat up.
"Ahh!" The man cried, as he dropped the sword, which had burned into his hands.
Cersei and Jaime both turned to see Keaira, who had stepped forward. Without another thought, Jaime had grabbed his sword and stabbed the man in the stomach. He then stood up and began to fight with the next one. However, one of the other men had spotted her and began approaching, his sword raised. Keaira gulped, as fear crippled her, not being able to move. Suddenly she wished she had listened to Benjen more about learning to use her fire to fight. She took a step back, as her foot hit something. She looked down to see it was a pouch of wine, as her eyes widened. She bent down and picked it up and held it out in front of her. She saw that one of the other men now had Cersei by the throat, while Jaime was fighting off the two other men.
"Not much of a weapon, little girl" The man grinned, as he took a few steps forward.
She then threw the contents all over him, as he stared at her in disbelief, clearly not knowing what she hoped to achieve. She raised her hand out and imagined a candle where the man's shoe was, as it instantly caught on fire. It began as such a tiny flame, but almost instantly it spread up his leg, the alcohol making its path easy. He let out an agonising scream, as the fire spread up his body. Within a few seconds he was completely on fire, as Keaira watched what she had done. She had never heard a sound like it before, it seemed otherworldly hearing the man screech. He dropped to his knees, as his cries stopped, but the flames continued. She looked over at the men, who had dropped their swords in shock, having seen what she did. The man who was about to cut Cersei's throat had dropped to the ground, a terrified look on his face. The other two men quickly ran away, as Keaira expected Jaime to chase after them. Until she saw his face. Pure fear. He even took a step back as her eyes locked with his. She looked back at the man by her feet, who was now most certainly dead as the flames began to diminish. She had murdered a man.
Later that day, Keaira was sitting in Ned Stark's tent, with a blanket around her shoulders. She had been so worried that when Ned was informed of what she had done he would also look at her in fear, but he hadn't. Instead he looked at her with concern. He knew what a toll taking a life could take on someone, especially a person so young.
"My Lord, the King and Queen wishes to speak with the Lady Keaira" Jory announced, as he entered the tent.
Ned nodded, as Jory drew back the tent cloth for her to walk through. They walked in silence most of the way to the King's tent.
"I am so sorry, Keaira. If I had known what would result because of my actions…" Jory trailed off.
"It is not your fault. I killed someone. No one else did" Keaira shook her head, as she took a deep breath and entered.
She had been expecting to see a lot of people in there, but it was only the King, Cersei and Jaime. She felt very small suddenly, under their intense gazes.
"Ah, here she comes. The hero of the hour" The King greeted, as she bowed.
"We owe a great debt to you. You saved our lives" Cersei began.
"To think a young girl was able to protect the Queen where the Kingslayer could not…that certainly is a story I will enjoy telling for many years" The King chuckled.
Keaira saw the man he spoke of flinch at that word. Jaime's eyes connected with Keaira's for the first time since she had entered the tent. She was happy to see most of the fear had now dissipated from them, but she could still see an uneasiness there.
"Your Grace, may I speak?" Jory questioned, seeing Keaira's unease at these talks, as the King nodded.
"Keaira is very tired from the trials of today. She has never hurt another soul before…let alone kill them" Jory explained, as it was now Keaira's turn to flinch.
"Of course, a first kill. Something that should always be celebrated. How did it feel watching that bandit burn in front of your eyes?" The King inquired, curiously.
"…Good" She answered, looking him directly in the eye.
Her honesty seemed to make him uncomfortable, as he squirmed in his chair, and allowed them to leave.
Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I'm planning on developing Keaira's character a lot, as she's going to be darker than most OC's out there. Please leave a review:)
claudiacascione4: Aw, thank you:)
Bella-swan11: I think Tyrion will definitely like the relationship that's going to develop between Keaira and Jaime. And your right, I think Tywin would also see the benefits of them being together. However, at the moment I think Jaime is still very much in love with Cersei. Thank you for the review:)
Padfootette: I'm glad you like it, thanks!
FanGirl: Thanks, I'm hoping this story will keep getting better as it develops!