Chapter 12: Aftermath of the Red Wedding

I was on the floor in my chambers as I see my handmaiden - Shailene enters. "You must eat, my lady," she says. "You haven't eaten in days and you've locked yourself up for days as well." That's true of course, I've locked myself up since I've found out about Robb and my mother. I didn't even know if Bran and Rickon or even Arya was alive but I firmly believe that Arya is alive. I nodded as I stood up.

"My whole family are dead except for Sansa of course," I said, holding back the tears.

"I know," she says. "I completely understand what you are going through with your family. My father and brother have too died at the Red Wedding. They fought against those Freys and Boltons. They joint your brother and your mother and defended the North."

"I-I didn't know about your family, Shailene," I added. "They fought with my family against those Freys and Boltons."

"I prefer to keep my secret about my family and I being from the North to myself," she says. "Like you keep secrets. I know for a fact you are now friends with Tyrion Lannister. I notice since Sansa's wedding. But whenever Cersei is around you are very rude to him. I think he knows that as well."

I walked towards my desk as I sat down on my chair. "Tommen is very angry at Joffrey at the moment. He didn't want his new family to die. He had a massive argument with Joffrey this morning from what I heard. Some of the handmaidens were speaking about the argument."

"What happened?" I asked, curiously.

"From what Mira Forrester said, Tommen said that the Starks are family because Tyrion is married to Sansa," Shaiene replies. I knew who Mira Forrester was. Her family are from the North and House Forrester supplied the Starks with Ironwood. I only met Mira once before coming to King's Landing. She was with her father and her brother giving my father the Ironwood supply and also get permission to give Ironwood shields to the Watch. "He also says that he is betrothed to you and technically they - Cersei, Tyrion, Joffrey, Myrcella and himself - are related to the Starks. Joffrey punched Tommen in the face - in front of Cersei, Tywin, Tyrion and Sansa. Tommen got a broken nose from Joffrey."

I smiled as I stood up from my desk. "I came here to tell you that Cersei expects you to greet the guests for Lady Margaery's and King Joffrey's wedding as they are arriving today. She wants you at the entrance of the Red Keep with Tywin, Jamie and Tommen." I didn't know Jamie was back from his 'trip'.

"I'll head to the Red Keep gardens now," I said, sounding sad. "Come, Shailene. We must greet our guest."

"You better change first," she says.

I looked down. I was still wearing my nightgown and nodded in agreement. I chosen a dress which was a light purple with a some grey on the sides.

I walked straight down to the Red Keep gardens to meet with Cersei, Tywin, Jamie and Tommen. As soon as I got to the gardens, Cersei greets me with a warm hug (which I knew was fake of course). "I'm sorry about your family, little dove," she says in a sweet tone. I knew she was just doing this to make it up to Tommen (who wasn't her favourite son - it was Joffrey who was her favourite. It was always Joffrey and Myrcella that were her favourites).

"I'm over it now," I said. That was a lie of course. I wasn't exactly over the fact that my family have died.

"Anyway, the guests are also staying yours and Tommen's wedding," she adds. "I must greet some of the guests, Lyra. Excuse me." She walks off to greet the guests.

I notice Tommen - who looks different. more grown up wearing his formal prince outfit along with a bandage on his nose. "Lyra," he calls out. "How are you? I haven't seen you since Sansa told us about King Robb's and your mother's - Catelyn's deaths."

"I'm okay," I lied.

"No you are not," he says. "I can tell you are lying."

"To tell you the truth, I miss my family," I said, sounding sad. "I wish they were here to enjoy this wedding. Instead they are either dead or missing."

"They are technically family," he says, looking sad. "Now that Sansa and Uncle Tyrion are related to the Starks. Once we are married, the Starks, the Lannisters and the Baratheons will be united."

I smiled as we hugged each other. We walked into greet the other guests. After greeting the guests we went back inside the Red Keep to get ready for the formal dinner with the guests houses - House Martell - Oberyn and his paramour Ellaria Sand, House Tyrell (Margaery who I never got along with, Loras, who has always been nice to me and Lady Olenna, who has been nice to me since she met me), House Lannister (Tywin, Cersei, Jamie and Tyrion), House Baratheon (Joffrey and Tommen) and House Stark (Sansa and I).

Dinner was uneventful to say the least. Margaery kept on giving me evil stares as I lean into talk to Cersei and Tywin. Joffrey was consumed by his victory as he rubs his victory into both Sansa and my faces. Tommen looked uncomfortable as Joffrey kept on talking about the Starks defeat that he got up and went to his chambers without dessert.

I followed straight afterwards as Joffrey mentioned how the Freys, the Boltons and the Lannisters killed them. I held my feelings all in as I exit from the hall and walked straight to my chambers breathing heavily and nearly in tears as I entered my chambers and collapse on my bed in tears. I fell straight to sleep after putting my nightgown on with my face in tears.

I woke up with my face covered in dried up tears and my mouth felt dry with cracks from the tears. As I became used to the daylight I heard a knock at the door. "Lyra," I heard Tommen called out. I sat up on my bed and stepped out of bed as I walked to the door. I opened the door to find Tommen still in his bed clothes and looked as if he cried for hours as well. He face was dried up from the tears and his mouth was also dried up as well.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, Lyra," he says. "I know it's early but I need to talk to you."

I nodded as I let him in. He sits on my bed as I joined him. "If it's any consideration I know how it feels. I couldn't say anything in front of the guests but I cried when I found out about-about their deaths, of course you knew that. But when Joffrey talked about their deaths like that at dinner I had to walk out. It upsets me that your brothers and the rest of your family are now gone."

"I understand," I said. "I miss them."

"Once we are married we could escape to Winterfell like we talked about. We could just run away. My mother wouldn't even know. She doesn't even care about me anyway." We both sat there discussing how we would escape from King's Landing in the weeks to come as we held each other close. After all those years we were best friends.

Hey guys, just to let you guys know that I'll be starting a course soon. So updates maybe irregular depending on the length of study I do. Hopefully you guys understand. It's a course that I really want to do.

Hopefully you guys like this chapter. I already wrote it in a book so I just had to type it up. It took an hour to type up. I'll upload the next chapter on Thursday (hopefully) if not it will be Friday as usual.

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