Disclaimer: I do not own Game of Thrones or anything related. It belongs to George R.R. Martin, the creator of this wonderful universe and David Benioff and D. B. Weiss who created the show.
Face Claim for Queen Sanira: Caitlin Stasey.
Chapter Twenty-Three: The High Sparrow.
A soldier helped Cersei out of her carriage as she stared up at the building that she had been directed to that morning, she moved to take a walk towards the building with Ser Meryn standing ahead of her looking far from happy.
"I don't think this is a good idea, Your Grace," Ser Meryn said not to be anywhere but here, he didn't trust the man that the Queen had insisted upon coming to see. There were many stories spreading around the city about the man, he was nothing more than a pest if Ser Meryn was honest.
"Nonsense, Ser Meryn. These are deeply religious people," Cersei dismissed. "Where can I find the High Sparrow?" she spoke to the man at the bottom of some stairs that lead into the building. The man points up the stairs that he stood at, they were crowded with people waiting to enter; not that it deterred Cersei as she started to ascend them with Ser Meryn escorting the Queen while the rest of the men remained with the carriage.
Covering her nose as she climbed the stairs, Cersei ignored the people that seemed to be queuing for whatever reason. At the top of the stairs was a large room, Cersei paused as her eyes searched the room filled with people that were eating at tables before she spotted an old man in the centre of the room that was serving soup to the people in line.
"A young man said I would find the High Sparrow back here. Where is he?" Cersei asked moving towards the old man, she didn't see a man of great importance here that she had come to find. The old man chortled amused at her question as he continued to feed the people in the line, he didn't stop in his pace nor did he slow down.
"High Sparrow? Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Like Lord Duckling, or King Turtle. So, it's meant to. We're often stuck with the names our enemies give to us. The notion that we are all equal in the eyes of Seven doesn't sit well with some, so they belittle me," the old man mused, he nodded his head to those who blessed him for his kindness while he paid little mind to Cersei who stood not far from him. Ser Meryn looked around the room rather uncomfortable with their position, a look of disgust as he eyed the poor people that were around the room and eating.
"It's only a name, quite an easy burden to wear. Far easier than hers," the old man said nodding to the woman that he was serving, a smile on his face as she blessed him for his kindness before he moved onto the next person.
"Why no shoes?" Cersei asked her hands clasped before her, she stared down the man that she now knew to be the High Sparrow; she thought little of him as she took in the ruined state of his clothes and the lack of shoes on his feet. He looked like nothing more than a homeless person that slept on the streets of King's Landing, he didn't look like a High Septon; a man of great worship.
"Because I gave them away to someone who needed them more. We all do that. It stops us from forgetting what we really are," the old man said smiling, he paused for a moment to take in the Queen who was dressed in her finest clothes. Never mind the fact that her son, the King had wed in recent weeks and his new wife was the Queen Consort now; the expense of two royal weddings in so many months was not cheap.
"Is that why you came to King's Landing? To remind everyone?" Cersei asked rather amused, she didn't quite understand why anyone would come here; she knew that the High Septon had been furious about how the Sparrows had treated him. However, she had come here for another reason one that would put herself back on top and knock Margaery off her high horse at the very least.
"Everyone? I have a hard enough job reminding myself. Oh, I tell them no one's special. And they think I'm special for telling them so," the old man said with an amused shake of his head. He was no one really, he wasn't doing anything special just doing the work of the Seven.
"Perhaps they're right," Cersei smiled at her own words, she saw the old man as someone that she could use for her own means and thought him easy to manipulate just like everyone else around her. She was the last hope for the Lannisters, she couldn't count on anyone but herself to see that Tommen's reign was secure; it was all down to her because her father was dead and Jaime was no use as he couldn't fight with one hand.
"It would be comforting to believe that, wouldn't it? The Gods sent you here to tempt me? I hope not. I had assumed you'd only come here to arrest me. For that incident with the High Septon," the old man said turning to look to Cersei. After how his Sparrows had treated the High Septon he had been convinced that he would be dragged through the streets of King's Landing to be made an example of for all to see.
"An unacceptable way to treat the chosen representative of the Gods in this world, wouldn't you say?" Cersei replied simply, she eyed the man trying to work out what to really make of him. He seemed like a smart fellow, although she was sure that like all men he could be dealt with and used for her own gain; she could use him to make her own forces stronger and displace the Tyrell forces that threatened her control over Tommen.
"Hypocrisy is a boil. Lancing it is never pleasant. Although, they could have been more careful with the blade," the old man said shaking his head, he had told them to be careful when they went to deal with the High Septon. He hadn't meant for things to be so heavy handed, he was sure the High Septon had been rather embarrassed to have himself on display in such a way because of his own sinful behaviour.
"The High Septon came to speak to me today. He doesn't want me to arrest you, he wants me to execute you," Cersei mused raising an eyebrow wanting to see what this High Sparrow thought of such news. His face gave nothing away to the threat to his life, his eyes searching her face in an attempt to find out what was going on inside that head of hers.
"I wouldn't presume to know your thoughts on the matter," the old man said knowing that if he was to die then he would be rewarded by the Gods for his hard work spreading the word and doing good for others in this life. Cersei didn't speak for a moment, her face giving nothing away as she paused for affect before she pushed forward with her plan.
"My thoughts on the matter align with your own. The High Septon's behaviour was corrosive, as was his attitude. Having a man like that reside in the Sept eats away the Faith from the inside. So now he resides in the Red Keep's dungeons instead. The Faith and the Crown are the two pillars that hold up this world. If one collapses, so does the other. We must do everything necessary to protect one another," Cersei stated as if she was the pillar of religious belief and faith. The High Sparrow looked completely surprised by her words, he had certainly not expected such from Cersei after all he had heard about of the Dowager Queen.
"Our spies in King's Landing tell us that Cersei has engaged with the Sparrows," Robb said reading the latest missive that had arrived that afternoon, a frown on his face as he pondered how desperate Cersei must be right now. The news that she was engaging with religious fanatics was worrying, especially as she had locked up the High Septon and seemed to have given power to this High Sparrow.
"She's undermining Tommen without us needing to do anything," Stannis mused with a shake of his head, he wondered what went through that woman's mind when she did anything. Surely even she could see that by handing power to these fanatics that she was crippling her own son's throne; it was the main reason that Stannis had found himself turning away from Melisandre while his wife clung to her. The Lord of Light had asked for much to make Stannis king, the religion had been unpopular with his own men although a few had been quick to take it up after hearing the Red Woman speak.
"Perhaps we wont have a long wait before the boy concedes the throne," Stannis stated, he recalled what a sweet boy Tommen had been; not built to be King by any means and he knew that the role would tear Tommen apart. If things went as planned, then he hoped that Tommen could be convinced to surrender the throne without much of a fight then Stannis would see him given land of his own to retire to.
Stannis didn't want anymore bloodshed than needed, he would see no harm come to the boy that had been forced into the position that he was in. Robb nodded at Stannis' words, they could sit and watch Cersei tear down her own house from where they were; she was doing a fine job in ruining her son's reign without their intervention. It would only get worse once the truth about Robb and Sanira was revealed to the masses, they couldn't hide forever.
Please Review, Favourite and Follow xx
