Leila
"Ser Clegane! Ser Clegane! Put me down!" Leila shouted at the giant. Though uglier than his brother, she felt less fear with the Hound than the Mountain. He took orders from Joffrey, so she had no reason to be frightened.
When he didn't do anything, she tried to jump off the horse, but his arm whipped around and grabbed her before she could do anything.
"Ser Sandor!" She hissed.
"I will let you go at the Keep…when you are with your sister," he said.
"Do you know who I am? I am Leila Lannister of Casterly Rock! I am the daughter of Lord Tywin Lannister! I order you as a Lannister –" She started in.
"Shut it, Lannister!" The Hound said so viciously, that she cut off and felt tears coming to her eyes.
When they got to the Keep, the Hound lifted her off the horse roughly, nothing like Jaime normally did with her, and he all but dragged her to her chambers. She felt her cheeks burn with humiliation as people watched and a few even pointed at her. Compared to the Hound, she was the size of a child, and he was treating her like a little girl. When they got inside her chambers, he tossed her on the bed. She caught herself and trying to look as proud as any Lannister, she glared daggers at the Hound.
"Where is my brother?" She demanded to know.
"I cannot answer," the Hound said.
"Where is Lord Stark?" She asked.
"On his way to a ward most likely," the Hound said.
"How could his wife capture my brother!" She was livid. She screamed up at the Hound, and to her chagrin, his face didn't even falter. "Tyrion is innocent! I want to see Lord Stark immediately –Take me to his ward –"
The Hound reached up and rubbed his scarred face. His eyes darted to the door, back to Leila, and back to the door once again.
"I cannot," he said. "The Queen has summoned me. You are to stay here until further notice."
Leila tried to give him another order, but she knew her commands next to the Queen's would always be second. The Hound headed for the door and left her there, but not before she heard a click in the door.
"You coward!" She screeched through the closed door, but the Hound, if he heard, made no response.
Her head hurt from the frustration of the whole situation. What had prompted Catelyn Stark to capture her brother? What had Tyrion done? Nothing –Tyrion was gentle as a lamb. Had Lord Stark ordered it? Why did everyone hate her family?
She couldn't stand it, so she pulled out of her top drawer some parchment and set to writing some letters. First, she wrote to Robb. He is to be my husband. He would never betray me. Then she wrote to her father, telling him all that had happened and begging him to get Tyrion back. When she finished with both letters, she tried leaving again to send them off, but she swore when she remembered the door was locked.
Hours later, she heard the scratching of a key in the door. She smoothed her hair and her dress and waited.
"Cersei," Leila said when the door opened.
"Apologies for having you shut up like this, but it wasn't safe to go outside. It's never been safe to be honest," Cersei said, looking around Leila's room. "Who were you writing?"
"Father," Leila answered. She didn't mention Robb, because something in her gut told her not to. She casually walked over to the letters and placed them inside the drawer. "Cersei, what is happening? Why has Tyrion been taken? Lydia Stark said that he tried to kill Bran, but you know that's not true!"
"I don't know what's true or not true for my brother," she said. "Tyrion is a little monster. He killed our mother…"
Leila normally respected her sister, especially for doing her duty and marrying King Robert, but she flushed with anger when she insulted Tyrion.
"Mother was tending to him when he had a fever!" Leila spat.
"And thanks to that, you never knew your mother, did you?" Cersei offered a sympathetic smile, and Leila clenched her fists.
"Will Father rescue Tyrion?" Leila asked, changing the topic from the mother she never knew.
"I suppose he will. He still wears the Lannister crest. Catelyn Stark is about to learn that a Lannister always pays his debts," said Cersei.
"No!" Leila gasped angrily.
"No? She humiliated our house and stole your brother!" Cersei said. Of course Cersei would only say your, instead of our.
Leila's stomach stirred. She wasn't sure what to feel. Catelyn had taken Tyrion, but she had met Catelyn back at Winterfell and could honestly remember nothing ill about the woman. She was also to be her mother by law, and Leila knew she had a duty to stay by her husband's side. But what happened when staying by her husband's side meant defying her father?
"Can't Father just talk to the Starks? This is all just one big misunderstanding," she said miserably.
Cersei came over and stroked a hand through Leila's hair.
"Sometimes I envy how much time you spent at the Rock. You're so naïve to politics. Get used to them, Leila, if you want to keep your life," her sister told her. "This isn't a simple matter of just talking. What Catelyn Stark has done is insult our entire family, the Lannister dynasty. If people learn of Tyrion's capture, they will see him as a weakness, and that could leave our house open to an attack."
"Father has never lost a battle," Leila argued. "I want Tyrion home."
"And he shall return," Cersei responded. "For now, though, I want Eddard Stark locked in a prison cell. He should lose his head for this offense."
"But wouldn't that mean telling the North we want war?" Leila asked, feeling herself shiver. A war of any kind sounded dreadful, but especially a war with the North. "Besides, Lord Stark is King Robert's closest friend. He'd never allow him to be beheaded."
"He also gave up his badge, a treasonous act," Cersei said. "But no matter. We are only women here. Women don't change history."
"We do," said Leila. "We give birth to the future kings and lords of Westeros."
Cersei smiled warmly. "We do, don't we?"
Leila twiddled her thumbs for a moment before asking her sister: "Where has Jaime gone? Has he returned yet?"
Cersei's lip trembled. She wouldn't look Leila in the eye. Leila pretended not to notice and waited patiently.
"We think he rode to father's camp," she whispered. "He'll have to come back soon, won't he? He's a member of the King's Guard after all."
"Of course he'll return," Leila said, puzzled. "Have you spoken with King Robert yet? About what to do about Catelyn Stark?"
"Yes, I have, but he pretty much ignored me," Cersei said. "He bears too much love for the Stark fool, just as you said." Cersei stood up and pursed her pink lips. "If you'd excuse me, sister. The maesters said that Lord Stark should be waking up soon."
"Take me," Leila said. "I want to talk about him. I am to be his daughter someday, and I can talk reason to him."
Cersei chuckled. "Fathers never listen to their daughters, but if you wish, you may come."
Leila made sure she was presentable and followed Cersei out the door and to Lord Stark's ward. She briefly wondered if the other Stark girls had heard about their father. Then she remembered how she'd actually attacked Lydia. She thought it best to steer clear of her for a while. Lydia had more Stark in her than Tully after all and could be dangerous.
When they arrived at Lord Stark's ward, Leila saw him lying in a bed, his leg wrapped up and his face twisted. King Robert was already there, and he was looking down on Eddard with an expression Leila couldn't read.
"Your pardon, your grace," Lord Stark said.
"Do you know what your wife has done?" Cersei snapped, almost pushing Leila out of the way. Before she could fall, Robert grabbed a hold of her arm and stabled her.
"She did nothing I did not command," Eddard said firmly.
"Lord Stark! Please!" Leila moaned. "Tell your wife to return Tyrion! He's done nothing wrong! I know he'd never hurt your family!"
"Enough!" Robert roared. "Cersei, why the hell did you bring your sister here? This is no place for a woman!"
"She wished to come," Cersei answered.
King Robert made a loud and rude noise with his mouth. Leila glared at his back, but he paid her no mind. He was once again staring down at Lord Stark.
"Who'd have thought she had it in her?" Robert asked, and Leila understood he was referring to Catelyn.
"By what right dare you lay hands on my blood?" Cersei butted in once again. Now she said Tyrion was her blood, in the presence of the King, just to drive her point across.
"I am the King's Hand –" Eddard began but was cut off by a shrill Cersei.
"You were the King's Hand!"
" –Trying to keep the peace –"
"You shall now be held accountable –"
Again, Robert roared so loudly in rage that Leila jumped and she looked around for a chair to sit in. King Robert was fat and may have constantly smelled of wine, but he was still a frightening man. Though he didn't look the part, he had killed Prince Rhaegar…
"Oh, will both of you shut your mouths? Catelyn will release Tyrion and you'll make peace with Jaime," King Robert said to Eddard.
Leila's face lit up and she turned to Cersei.
"Did you hear that? Tyrion shall return to us soon," Leila said excitedly.
"He butchered my men." When Lord Stark's words came out of his mouth, Leila's blood turned to ice. She didn't wish to admit it, but technically, he was correct. She had watched Jaime brutally murder Eddard's guard for no reason whatsoever. Had Jaime been in the wrong? But if he hadn't have captured your brother, then this never would have happened!
"Lord Stark was returning drunk from a brothel when his men attacked Jaime," Cersei said smugly.
Before Leila thought about the consequences of her actions, she said in a high voice: "But that's not true Cersei. I saw the whole thing. Lord Stark was very much sober, and Jaime approached him and said –"
When Cersei whipped around, she fell silent.
"Leila doesn't understand the ways of King's Landing and the disgusting habits of men here, having been raised at the Rock. Sandor Clegane took her from the scene before she could actually witness anything –" Cersei said.
"He did not!" Leila cried.
"Quiet, woman!" King Robert snarled.
"Lady Leila speaks truth, even if it goes against her family. She saw the whole thing," Eddard said. Even if it goes against her family… She shivered. "Jaime has fled the city. Give me leave to bring him back to justice."
"I took you for a king!" Cersei hissed at Robert.
"Hold your tongue," Robert barked.
But Cersei just wouldn't shut up. "He's attacked my brother and abducted the other. I should wear the armor and you the gown –"
Wack!
Both Leila and Lord Stark flinched when King Robert viciously smacked Cersei across the face. The blow nearly knocked her off her feet, but with the pride of a Lannister, she kept her head high and glowered at Robert with her green stare. Anyone else would have been terrified, but it was nothing for the King.
"I shall wear this like a badge of honor," she hissed.
"Wear it in silence or I'll honor you again," Robert threatened.
Queen Cersei reached up and touched the smarting cheek. Already a bruise was beginning to form under her eye. She shot one last murderous look at Lord Stark and the King, and then she stormed out of the room. Leila just stood there.
"And you, Lannister!" King Robert shouted suddenly. Leila jumped. "Out with ya! Out with ya, I say!"
She said nothing more, scared of Robert's wrath and ran from the room to find Cersei. She spotted Cersei in the hall, staring out a window. Tears trickled down her cheeks. When Leila got to her, she placed a hand on her back, but Cersei swatted her hand away.
"Cersei," Leila began.
"This is your fault!" Cersei said. "How dare you turn your back on your family?"
"I did no such thing! I only told the truth in there," Leila tried to explain.
"Have you learned nothing? Lannisters always put their family first! It doesn't matter what happened," said Cersei. "Now Jaime is lost, and who knows when he will return!"
"Jaime just left for Father as you said!" Leila gasped. She wanted to cry. Why was Cersei so angry with her? Jaime would return, and so would Tyrion, and there wouldn't be any more problems between them and the North. "Cersei, please, you know I would never betray you or Jaime or Tyrion –"
"And yet your foolishness would," Cersei said harshly and left Leila standing there alone.
Leila watched her sister's retreating back, her blue and gold gown fanning out around her feet and her blonde sheet of hair flying out behind her. She walked like she was truly a queen. Leila felt a lump rise in her throat like she was going to be sick. She suddenly missed Casterly Rock and wanted to be back home. Her father would listen to her. He wouldn't snap at her. What right did Cersei have to reprimand her like that?
But she's right. I did go against my family in there…
She remembered the letter she wrote and mused on the idea of sending them. She decided against it, though.
She ended up returning to her room, but outside she saw Miriam. Miriam looked different, her hair not as well kept, and her pregnancy was definitely showing. She seemed more nervous to Leila. Leila invited her inside her chambers, hoping to get her mind off everything that had happened.
"…So Lord Eddard is to make peace with Jaime now," Leila explained, her stomach twisting. When she finished her story, Miriam didn't answer immediately.
"It's in Lord Stark's best interest to make peace with your family. Casterly Rock has more men than Winterfell," Miriam said knowledgeably. "Leila, in this world we live in, lords offend one another all the time. It would be different if the ladies ruled, but that's not how it works. Everything will be fine."
Leila folded her arms. "I know…but I just feel…conflicted. Damn it, can you believe the nerve of Catelyn Stark for capturing my brother?" Her face fell. "But can you believe the nerve of Jaime for attacking a man and the nerve of my sister for outright lying to the King about what happened? I know I am loyal to my family, and I can't change that, but I just don't know what to do. Whose loyalty is more important? My father's? Or my husband's?"
Miriam shrugged. "Family is everything."
Leila knew she was right, but it still hurt inside. Lannisters were lions. They were knights in shining armor. They were fair lords and virtuous maidens. So why were her brother and sister acting like the villains?
"I…" she trailed off, looking up at Miriam. "I'd like to visit Lord Stark. I'd like to offer my condolences. If I am to marry his son, I must make the first move for peace. He showed hospitality in Winterfell too, and a Lannister always pays her debts."
"Is that wise?" Miriam asked.
"I don't know, but I feel it's right," Leila mumbled. "Will you accompany me?"
"Yes, of course." Miriam bowed her head.
"Miriam," Leila snapped. "We're in my room. No one can see you. You don't have to act like my servant when no one is around. We're friends, so lift your head up like the Tyrell you are!"
Miriam offered a small smile, which was what Leila found she needed. They ended up leaving Leila's chambers and headed for Lord Stark's ward.
Leila nervously knocked on the door.
"Come in," came Lord Stark's cracked voice.
She swallowed and pushed open the door. Lord Stark sat up as much as he could to see who it was, and when he saw it was Leila, he fell back amongst the pillows.
"You shouldn't be in here, Lady Lannister," Lord Stark said, staring up at the ceiling. "You should be with your sister, comforting her. This was difficult on her."
"Cersei is upset," Leila said. "I already tried talking with her, but she pushed me away. I just…I just wanted to make sure you were alright. I saw what happened, and I apologize for my brother's actions, but you can understand why he was upset, right?"
"Aye," Lord Stark said. "I can understand, but he was still in the wrong."
Leila smiled weakly. "I know, and I don't understand everything, but I know you're innocent of any wrong doing. Your daughter… She told me something…"
"What did Lydia say?" Lord Stark asked. Somehow he knew exactly who she was talking about.
"I didn't know that your wife took Tyrion, so when I witnessed the brawl, I attacked Lydia. I was not thinking; I was just angry. I demanded to why you took Tyrion, and Lydia told me that Tyrion tried killing Bran," she said. She stared imploringly at Eddard. "I know that's not true. I don't know who would frame Tyrion for such an atrocious act. I don't know who would attack an innocent boy of ten, especially asleep in his bed, but I know it wasn't Tyrion. I came to make sure you were alright and that you were healing, but I also came to share that with you. Tyrion is innocent. I can't say Jaime is completely innocent, but I can say Tyrion is."
"Leila," Lord Stark's voice broke. He'd never called her by her first name before. "I don't believe you are a bad person. I believe you have an honor not every lord and lady can understand. I appreciate your concern for me."
"And what of Tyrion?" She asked.
"You already heard what King Robert had to say. I will write to my wife and tell her to release your brother," he said.
Leila then noticed the Hand of the King badge next to Lord Stark.
"Are you Hand again?" She asked.
"I am. King Robert left me in charge while he's away on his hunt," Eddard answered. "It's going to be a long week…"
Leila smiled. "If you need anything from me, Lord Stark, I am here. It's the least I can do…especially since you are Robb's father."
Leila then closed in on him and squeezed his hand before leaving the room, Miriam on her heels. She felt oddly better. She felt as if she hadn't betrayed her family, but she had still helped her husband's family. It was a relieving feeling. She looked back at Miriam and again noticed how she was beginning to show her pregnancy. That was another thing to worry about. What would happen when the child was born?
Later in the evening, Leila separated from Miriam and ate supper with Cersei and the Baratheon children. Cersei's cheek bruise was large and vivid, but she acted like nothing was wrong. Joffrey looked down at his food and snarled.
"They think this food is worthy of a future king," he growled. "When I am king, I will kill any man that dare serve something like this!"
Cersei chuckled.
"You will be a wise king, love," she said. "Your father isn't going to die anytime soon, though, so you still have some time…"
"I don't like that Stark girl much," Joffrey said, changing the subject. "I think she's dull, and she doesn't understand me."
"Be patient with her. A wolf doesn't always understand the majesty of a stag…a stag with lion's blood," Cersei said.
"I like Sansa," Tommen piped in.
"She's very beautiful," Myrcella added. "I'll be glad to call her sister."
"You see, dear son? She will be welcomed into our family," Cersei said. "Now, if you don't like your food, don't eat it. The cooks shall prepare something different for you. Anything you want, it's yours, my sweet boy."
"Lord Stark is the Hand of the King again," Leila spoke up. "I saw the badge. He told me himself."
"When did you visit Lord Stark?" Cersei asked, her eyes boring into Leila's.
"I went a few hours ago. I did it as a good gesture between houses." Leila shrugged and took a bite of food, as Cersei watched. "The badge was there, and Lord Stark told me that King Robert was leaving soon on a hunt. Lord Stark will be in charge while he's gone. I feel sorry for him."
"He captured your brother," Cersei replied.
"Tyrion's coming back, though," Leila said. "Anyways, I hope King Robert isn't away on his hunt for too long. It's a lot of responsibility for just one man."
Cersei's eyebrows rose.
"A hunt, you say?" She said.
"Yes, a hunt. It sounds like it's going to be a long one," Leila said.
Cersei smiled lovingly at Leila and her children. "We are blessed to have such a sweet sister and aunt. Leila, your heart never ceases to amaze me."
Leila's thoughts and feelings soared. She knew she had done something right when Cersei complimented her.
