A.N. Thank you for those who have stayed (and the possible new ones), I hope you'll enjoy.


'You are late. Again.' Jaime remarked with a hint of reproach in his voice when his sister took a seat between him and their son at the dinner table.

Cersei shot an angry glance at him. 'I won't apologize for missing dinner. I'm running the damn country, Jaime.'

'More like ruining it.' Tommen muttered under his breath.

'What did you just say?' Cersei snapped at him.

The young boy didn't let himself being intimidated. He stood his mother's gaze and replied with a shrug. 'I said you are ruining the country.'

'Luckily, it's not up for you to decide.' Cersei snorted in disdain.

Jaime, as always, tried to ease the tension and put a hand on his twin's arm. 'Why don't we eat?'

Cersei let out a sigh and nodded, but suddenly something else grabbed her attention. Her son also took her arm from the other side and softly started chanting:

'Lord, bless this food and grant that we may thankful for thy mercies be; teach us…'

'Stop this right now. What the hell are you doing?' Cersei cried out in shock and anger.

'I'm saying grace.' Tommen answered a bit surprised. 'Uncle Jaime said it was okay.'

'No, it's not okay.' his mother jerked away her hand from his. 'I let Margaery take you to church every Sunday, but you won't be doing this at home. Not at my table.'

'Fine. I'm not hungry anyway.' Tommen shrugged and left the table.

Cersei shook her head in frustration, then reached for the bottle of red wine that was prepared on the table and poured a glass full.

'You shouldn't…' Jaime began, but he was quickly silenced by his sister's contemptuous look.

'I shouldn't what? Drinking while I'm pregnant?' Cersei rubbed her rounding belly. 'It's my fourth pregnancy. I know how to keep a baby alive. Well, at least until she's on the inside.'

'Three more months. It's almost over.' her twin remarked gently.

'And here I thought the party's just been getting started.' Cersei chuckled softly.

Jaime smiled back at her and took advantage of her momentary good mood.

'What is going on? You are on the edge ever since you came back from that stupid fortune teller. What did she tell you?'

The wine glass between Cersei's fingers stopped midair and she completely froze for a moment.

'I see a motherless child. She won't have you in her life for long.' Lady Melisandre's voice echoed in her head.

'What did she tell you?' Jaime's voice dragged her out of her thoughts.

'Nothing. Just a bunch of crap.' Cersei said with a faint smile and downed the rest of her drink. 'I think I'm going to call it a night.'

With that said, she got up from her chair and headed toward the big double door that separated the large state dining room from her private residency.

'Now? It's only nine o'clock.' her brother stated in surprise.

Cersei stopped for a moment and turned back to him. 'I had meetings after meetings the whole day. I'm tired. I say good night to Myrcella, then I go to bed.'

'Do you still think she has a better chance of waking up if she is here instead of the hospital?'

Jaime's question hung in the air for a while, before Cersei turned around and left.


Cersei lay on her side with Jaime behind her, resting his hand on her belly.

'How can you sleep when she is kicking so hard?' he asked curiously.

'You see that I can't.' Cersei oppressed a yawn.

Her brother got quiet for a while, then he asked. 'Aren't you afraid that they're gonna take the kids away from us?'

Cersei raised her eyebrows in surprise and turned to face her twin.

'No. The free marriage act will get passed. Then we'll get married and everything's going to be fine.'

'How can you be so sure?' Jaime frowned.

His sister started to get frustrated with all the questions and tried to cut it short. 'Because it's not how it ends for me.'

'What do you mean?' Jaime asked again, but lucky for Cersei, she didn't have to answer because someone knocked on the door.

'Come on in.' she sat up and turned on the light.

The man in uniform at the door managed to overcome his embarrassment and quickly got on with his announcement.

'Ma'am, sorry to bother you, but you are needed in the situation room.'

'I'll be right there.' Cersei gave him a short nod and let him go.


'Where is Jaime?' Tyrion asked his sister as she entered the room.

'He is still against the war. He doesn't like us killing the Dornish scumbags.' Cersei remarked casually as she adjusted the robe on herself that she had hastily thrown on her nightgown.

Tyrion didn't let it go so easily. 'Even if it is the only thing that stands between you and an impeachment?

'Not even if it's our last chance to take revenge on our daughter's killer.' Of course, Cersei had her own reasons not to want Jaime in the sit room that night, but it was none of her brothers' business.

'Are you ready Madam President?' one of her generals asked.

'Yes.' Cersei turned to him. 'What do we know?'

'She's run by the name of Ellaria Sand. Leading member of the Sand Snakes.' the man began, but Cersei quickly interrupted him.

'Tell me something I don't know.'

The general listened to her insult without blinking an eye and continued. 'She left Dorne two days ago with fake IDs and managed to slip into Lannisport under our radars.'

'How?' Cersei snapped at him and looked around the room full of military men and politicians. 'Where is she now?'

'In a shopping mall downtown.' the Secretary of Defense replied willingly.

'Do we have cameras there?' Tyrion asked, worried.

'Yes, we have.' the general said in a firm voice, then he turned to his President. 'Ma'am, we have reason to believe that she is wearing a suicide vest.'

'We also think it's personal.' a young lieutenant added.

'Personal how?' Cersei frowned.

'First she was trying to kill your daughter, now she is in your home town.' the general explained. 'We suspect that she chose a spot with so many cameras on purpose.'

'She wants me to see when she blows up herself.' it slowly started to sink in to Cersei. 'How fast can our men get to her?' she asked while she looked up to the screen that showed the live stream of a bookshop's security camera.

The Secretary of Defense cleared his throat that made everyone turn in his direction.

'We already have a team stand-by. She has been in that bookshop you see for the past ten minutes, seems to be waiting for someone.'

'Then what are you waiting for?' Cersei cried out in anger. 'Kill her.'

'With her wearing the suicide vest we can't guarantee to prevent the explosion. We must neutralize the target, but we have to be sure to minimalize to casualties.' the young lieutenant said matter-of-factly.

'How many people are in the shop?' Tyrion asked.

'Five. Two in the back, three in the front. One of them is a minor.' came the answer from the general.

Cersei instinctively put her hand on her stomach. 'How old?'

The general noticed her gesture and remarked in a softer tone: 'A three-year-old boy.'

'Our men are in position, Ma'am. We are ready to take her out.' the lieutenant interrupted.

'No.' Cersei shook her head. 'Not until you get that child out of there.'

The Secretary of Defense opened his mouth to protest. 'Madam President. There are hundreds of people in the movie theater and the film is almost over. If Ellaria Sand leaves the shop and blows up herself there, a lot more people will die. I suggest you take the chance now.'

'Get. The. Child. Out.' Cersei shouted, boiling with rage.

The whole room got quiet for a moment, until the young lieutenant broke the silence.

'The kid is just wobbling toward the back exit. Almost out of the shop. Someone could go and grab him, then take him to safety.'

'What about his mother? ' Tyrion asked, but no one dared to answer his question.

'All right. I will give you the order to fire as soon as the boy is safe. But not a moment before that.' Cersei remarked in a categorical voice.

'Everyone in position. Get ready. We are going in.' the general gave the order in a walkie-talkie while they all stared at the screen that showed the live feed from the bookshop.

They all held their breath until the general finally spoke up. 'All right. The boy's out. Madam President. Do we have your permission to neutralize the target?'

'Wait. Someone is coming.' the lieutenant cried out.

'It's a woman. She is walking right into the shop.'

'Isn't it..?' Tyrion didn't finish his question, but his sister confirmed his worst fear.

'Yes, it's Margaery. Damn it!' Cersei cursed and turned away from the screen.

She looked at her brother for advice who shook his head in disbelief.

'Abort.' Tyrion gave the order to the general, which he didn't pass on. 'Are you deaf? I said: stand down!'

'They are waiting for me.' his sister remarked with a serious expression.

'Then what are you waiting for? Tell them! She is our father's wife for God's sake!' Tyrion shouted and grabbed his sister's arm to make her look at him again.

'Ma'am!' the general called Cersei who finally looked away from her brother and turned to him. 'We don't have more time. Can we proceed?'

'Pray your way out of this one, Margaery.' Cersei thought to herself, then let out a sigh.'Proceed.'