Tyrion
Rhaegar Targaryen has gone to Braavos," Jon Arryn said.
"He is and for finalising the deal with the Iron Bank." Hoster Tully said. The cool night air filled Lord Hoster's solar through the opened balcony.
Tyrion said nothing and took a sip from his wine. He was oft quiet in council, preferring to listen before he spoke, a habit Tyrion himself tried to emulate from his father, Lord Tywin Lannister.
"Viserys is dead, Rhaegar gone, now is the perfect time to strike King's Landing before they could get up from the loss of the big heads," Edmure Tully announced, all youth and glory.
Jon Arryn gave a sharp look at his good brother. "Without the North?" He raised his eyebrows at the young Tully. "Without the northern support we might end up in the jaws of the dragons even before we start what we want to do."
Edmure Tully gave an abashed look and bowed his face down.
"We cannot move on our terms with the entire power of Winterfell looming behind us," Lord Arryn said, his lined face taut and his mouth pressed tight. The man looked nothing like the man he had seen in his nephew's marriage. It's only been days since the marriage yet the change in the man was unbelievable even for Tyrion.
"Jon is right," Robert said placing his strong arms on the table, his black hair pulled back and tied in a perfect knot. "We cannot leave Winterfell in the hands of the Targaryens behind us. If we do so we will get locked in between from the north and the south. And it will be only a matter of time before the dragons do a short work of us."
Atleast he was good in this thing. Robert reminded him more and more of his brother Jaime. Both had their wits in their sword hands.
"Well if that is the case then you should march to liberate Winterfell," Cersei voiced her thoughts for the first time, the only woman in the meeting. His sister always thought herself as Lord Tywin with teats and she tried hard to be that, only to fail in her plans. She did have her wits and courage but Lord Tywin never rushed with anything. On the other hand his sister had her way of rushing things.
"Quiet woman," Robert silenced her. "If things were so simple as that, I myself would ride north with my hammer to knock down Winterfell's gates and liberate Winterfell from the Dragonspawn. Thing is who will lead the north after that? Without a Stark there will be no peace in the north let alone a proper leader."
"What about Lord Eddard's brother, Benjen," Hoster Tully offered, "The last I heard of him, he was with the Night's Watch."
Robert chuckled at once. "That is Ned's brother. If he was half the man that Ned was, expecting him is like expecting one of the Targaryen dragons to turn to our side. The Starks and their honors." Robert grew visibly upset at the mentioning of Ned Stark.
Eleven years has passed since the death of the Stark lord and his family, his beautiful young wife and their little son. It was queer to him to see the people clinging over some incident happened almost twelve years ago. But then again some past were meant to be remembered Tyrion thought remembering Tysha and their short lived marriage.
"That leaves us with the Westerlands now," Hoster Tully mentioned.
Tyrion looked up away from the depths of the wine swirling in his cup to find all the eyes of the men in the room fixed upon him.
"Where is father?" Cersei demanded at once. "What is he doing by sending you here?"
Tyrion placed his wine cup on the table and leaned forward from his chair. "That is why I am here sweet sister," he said directing a smile at Cersei. His sister only seemed irritated by that and Tyrion loved to see her like that. "I am here in the place of my father."
"So what is the plan of Tywin Lannister?" Robert asked. "He must have one or did he send you here to simply wish Gendry on his marriage in his place."
Hot heads. The gods must have played jokes with the matches they made for Cersei. First Jaime, now Robert both slow in wits and quick in hands. "Both," he answered and took a sip of wine from his cup.
The men continued with the talks of war but Tyrion worried nothing but for wine. He picked up the flagon from the table and filled his cup again. The wine in the cups of the others remained untouched so it wouldn't be a problem even if he emptied the entire flagon. He placed the flagon down again on the table and took another sip of the wine. The warm wine snaked its way down his throat to his belly, warming up his insides.
"We should be happy about Viserys' death," Lord Hoster said. "Atleast that delayed Rhaegar's entire plans for his alliance. He still needs to tie all the loose ends to solidify his alliance."
"Speaking of Viserys' death isn't it a bit odd about it," Tyrion said looking into the red swirls of the wine in his cup.
"What is curious about it?" Robert's voice made him to look up. "The damn thing was destined to die anyway. He killed Ned's wife and son. If he didn't got killed in Braavos I would have killed him myself."
Someone must tell him the entire story of Viserys death, Tyrion thought. Half truths might reveal only half the things you wanted to know.
"There is nothing odd about Viserys' death. He was expected to die," Tyrion said. "But it is odd about how he died. He was hanged from a brothel with a broken face."
All their eyes was fixed on him and Tyrion continued. "Now any normal Sellsword or cutthroat will try to keep their handiworks hidden. No one would proudly display their accomplishment like this. Surely no one would do a thing like this to a Prince of Westeros of course, until he was a half wit. Or else he must have been an intelligent one to do that."
"What are you trying to say?" Cersei urged.
I am trying to save your family you fool, Tyrion wanted to say but he didn't voiced his thoughts. "Oh if you still couldn't understand it sweet sister you're dumber than I thought you to be."
Cersei leered at him and was ready to jump for him but the tension between them was broken by Jon Arryn's voice.
"He is right," Lord Jon Arryn said. "Viserys comes back as a corpse and Rhaegar goes to Braavos in his place. If I am right Viserys' killer has not only killed Viserys but also used Viserys' death to lure Rhaegar to Braavos right where he killed Viserys."
"But who is that?" Edmure Tully pushed it once again.
"I don't know," Tyrion admitted swirling the wine in his cup. He looked up at the men around the table, noting all their faces. "All I can say is that you are not the only ones who were wronged by the Targaryens."
"Anyways how will this ghost of a man you talk of about would be of any help to us?" Edmure Tully asked at once.
He will be more of a help than you are now of course, Tyrion found his anger raising in him. Edmure Tully was nothing like his father, all about wars and glory just like all the young men of his age. I am young too and wars and glory are not my thing but then again I am only half a man.
Tyrion looked at Edmure Tully. "There is an old saying, 'An enemy of my enemy is my friend'," he said.
"You want us to forge an alliance with him," Robert raised his eyebrows at him. "Well good luck finding him in the first place. He could be anywhere in Braavos now."
"I am not asking you to join your hands with him," Tyrion said placing his hands on the table. "All I am saying is that give him some time. If he is any good at doing this, with luck on his side it is only a matter of time before Rhaegar ends up the same way as his brother did. And I think him to be good at this."
Tyrion leaned forward from his chair and looked at the faces of all the men surrounding him, all great lords and legends and he was sitting with them. "With Rhaegar dead his entire alliance will be destroyed. His wife Lyanna could never hold it together like Rhaegar had and before they know what had happened hell might break loose on them. The Tyrells will push to place Margaery on the throne with Aegon while the Martells will demand to right the wrongs done to Elia Martell and her children by giving Arianne Martell the place which should have belonged to Elia. The Reachmen and the Dornish will be at each others' throats and the Targaryens will be forced to select one of them. With the disputes in the south, they might very well forget the north. There are ways and weapons to kill a dragon. Liberate Winterfell from the hands of Jaeherys Targaryen and give the northerners a chance to avenge their lords and heirs. The north remembers. They have lost their lords and heirs of two generations. I'm pretty much sure that they would never have forgotten the deaths of Eddard Stark or his father or his brother and not even his little son. Now with this army against that quarreling one it will be an easy job for us to wipe out the entire Targaryens and their dragons from existence."
By the time Tyrion finished his plan his throat was dry and he needed wine more than anything. He took a big drink from his cup and looked up at the table. Everyone in the room was looking at him. He could even see a hint of awe in the face of Cersei, only marred with hate and a fake smile.
"That is a ..." Lord Jon started, "good plan."
Lord Hoster Tully and his brother, one of the heroes of Tyrion's brother Jaime, Brynden 'The Blackfish' Tully both seemed to approve it as well.
"Even if your plan endangers my chances of killing the Dragonspawn, I like it," Robert laughed and clapped his back which made Tyrion sway in his chair.
"What about the Iron Bank?" Cersei asked with a smile so sweet you couldn't see the secrets behind it. "If Rhaegar gets this contract of Iron Bank for his family, the Targaryens could very well raise their own Sellsword army."
"That shouldn't be a problem," Tyrion smirked drinking his wine. "Rumors."
"Rumors?" Cersei asked surprised.
"Yes, rumors," Tyrion eased himself against the cushioned chair. "The Braavosi have always hated the valyrians until now. But now with a valyrian prince dead in Braavos and a king soon to follow him, it almost measures the end of their friendship. A wrong word in the wrong ear, their contract would very well burn the same time Rhaegar burns in his pyre."
As the Lords before him approved his plans, Tyrion thought about the thing his father had sent him here. "Get them to make Robert the King and I'll support them," Lord Tywin had told him the day he travelled from Casterly Rock to Riverrun for his nephew's wedding. Looking at the Lords before him Tyrion smiled, you see father I have done something a lot greater than what you have asked me to do. Now they stand together.
Author's Notes: Okay so a short chapter for Tyrion. We'll be seeing more of this little guy
Replies for Guest readers: To Marvelmyra on Chapter 1: Thanks for the comments first. Ashara was Elia's favorite handmaiden? I'm sorry, I haven't ever seen a claim such as this in the books. The only thing I heard was that Ashara was one of (not favorite) Elia's ladies-in-waiting. Other than that nothing is said about them. No single mention has been made about it. Barristan thinks about both Ashara and Elia and he thinks about them separately. There is no mentioning of any closeness between them. Oberyn speaks about Elia and also about their visit to Starfall on their way to Casterly Rock. Now if Ashara and Elia had some kind of friendship surely Oberyn would've said about it. Just because Ashara was her lady-in-waiting you can't say that they were like Joanna-Loreza. There is no valid claim that they were close. After all Ashara has just came into her service only a few years before Harrenhal. Ser Barristan's thoughts say it, 'A maid not long at court'. The reasons said for Ashara's death include a lost husband, a lost brother and a lost child. Even there no mentioning of Elia is mentioned. Seriously there is no single claim for that.
Again and again, tell me where did you read about this hidden letter of Lyanna? As far as I know there is nothing. Because if she'd sent some form of a letter to her family she would've definitely ask about it to Ned but Ned never thinks or mentions of some letter of hers. Also isn't it so dumb as to give such an important letter to Lysa, who is a complete stranger to her (not to mention Petyr who wasn't even there. He was sent as soon as he was healed before the northern party came)? That was just given as an eg for the mistakes in that theory. But really there was no such letter or not even mention of one as far as we know. Lysa confesses all the things she'd done under Baelish's prodding but even she doesn't tell of this letter you speak of. No offence but if you ever read something about this letter in the books please tell me the chapter and the book so I could read about it.
What Brandon would've done? We would've known that if Lyanna or Rhaegar had the right mind to just say about it. But they didn't, they just ran. I believe that the northmen will be cold towards her since she broke the betrothal made in front of the eyes of gods and men which is a dishonorable act. Of course it is just my belief.
And how are you saying that Ashara knew about R+L. If she had known she would've told someone and stopped the war. After all she loved Ned and now her lover is going to fight in some war and her brother too. So are you saying that she too was irresponsible and idiotic like Lyanna? That's just stupid. How did you even think that she knew about it?
To Marvelmyra on Chapter 2: The main fact I chose for Ned-Lyanna relationship is that in the books Ned admits that Lyanna was wrong in the thing with Rhaegar and justifies her death. 'Willful and dead before her time.' that's Ned's words not mine. Ned is not the one to take it easy when someone does the wrong thing. He despises Jaime for killing Aerys. Really, either Robert or he would've done the job if not for Jaime and Aerys is to die. Similarly if Lyanna had lived after her decisions had killed their father and brother and brother's wife it is natural for the man to be pissed off.
Now are you saying that if Robert or Jon is killed nothing would happen or Ned would stay silent? I really hope that you don't. But if you did you really should read AGOT because you really need to understand the relationship of Robert-Jon-Ned. It's more like Son-Father-Son.
And I can assure you there is more mysteries to the Ned/Ashara storyline than you think. I'll be bringing it up as the story goes on.