Chapter Eleven

A/N: Thank you to Guest and magnus374 for reviewing the last chapter.

The four years they had been promised scarcely amounted to two before the tensions between the king and his Lord Hand reached their breaking point. Aerys had grown increasingly erratic, one minute a joyful soul, the next crying for men to be burnt at the stake. Even Lord Tywin could not hold the madness at bay.

The raven came as little surprise when it battled the sea air to the Rock, bearing a scroll that would change the fate of the Seven Kingdoms, least of all to the lady herself. Only four-and-ten, and yet Cersei knew full well her wish for freedom would be too much for even a prince to grant.

Lord Tywin did not even bother to deliver the news himself, instead sending a page to his daughter's chamber, carrying a letter from the prince that had accompanied the raven scroll. His usually intricate script was rushed, the ink smudged in places, but it was comforting nonetheless.

My lady Cersei,
I feel I must apologise that the promise I made to you cannot be fulfilled any longer. The intention for our engagement to last four years was made on the assumption that the strong relationship between my father and yours would remain that way, but unfortunately, that has not been the case. The alliance of our Houses is now so fragile that our marriage is the only way to bridge the gap, and it must be soon. Our wedding shall take place in a moon's turn, enough time for you to have a gown made and to reach the capital. I am sorry it cannot be any further away, but those are the cards the Gods have dealt us. I am certain we can find a way to make it work.
I look forward to seeing you again, though I regret the circumstances under which this meeting must occur,
Rhaegar.

Cersei allowed herself a gentle sigh, a moment to realise that she would be gaining a crown, and losing her freedom, a thousand times sooner than she had thought. But once that moment was done, she rose from her window seat, smoothing her gown and brushing down her hair. She had no time to fixate now on what once might have been. She was the daughter of Tywin Lannister, a princess by the moon's turn; there was no time to be a child any longer.

Before the moon rose in the sky, Lord Tywin had set Lannisport to work. The finest dressmakers in the city were cutting fabrics and stitching jewels, each desperate to be able to claim they had been the ones to sew the princess' wedding gown. On the edge of the mines, the most skilled jewellers set precious gems into delicate chains and golden bands, the simplest show of power for a lady of the Westerlands.

For days on end, Cersei found herself wandering the streets of Lannisport, committing each sight and sound to her memory. One of her most vivid recollections of her lady mother was of the woman wandering through the marketplaces, Jaime clinging to one hand and Cersei the other, a way of showing support to the people of the city. Of course, her mother was gone now, Jaime too, a burly silent guard her only company. She was no longer the face of the Westerlands; she was to be the lady of the Seven Kingdoms.

On her final night at Casterly Rock, there was no grand feast or dancing. She ate supper with her father, her younger brother sat at her side. She had surprised herself and everyone around her when she asked for Tyrion to be present at her final meal; it was not that she was going to miss the little monster, but it did not feel right to part ways in silence.

She retired to bed early, claiming she needed the energy for the journey ahead; a truth, but with a lie hidden amongst it. In truth, her heart was aching, one half of her soul miles away already and soon to be further still.

"Jaime." she whispered, as if he could somehow hear her even from Crakehall. "I'm sorry."

She had sent a raven the moment she had heard the news, but the bird had returned with an empty string tied around its leg. Regardless, if Jaime knew she was leaving, he would never reach her in time, and with his guardian far too unimportant to be invited to a royal wedding, it would most like be years until she saw him again.

Though she had been expecting this moment since she was only a girl, Cersei still felt a pang of regret at having to leave her brother behind. They were born together, two halves of one whole, they should not have been pulled apart… but Jaime could never have half her heart, for that would belong to another. Mayhaps it already did.

Dawn rose crisp and cold with the sea air, a drizzle of rain dampening the horses' saddles. It was not the glowing Casterly Rock she would wish to remember, more a dismal imitation veiled in grey, but there was little to be done for that now. Cersei could only hope the Seven had not forsaken her entirely.

"No time for dawdling, Cersei." Tywin called, his cloak sweeping behind him as he left the keep. It was hardly true- they had a fortnight to make a journey that ought only to take a week- but she inclined her head nonetheless, cowed by her father's foul mood. He did not want this match as much as he once had, for it would bind him to a madman's bloodline, but he was far too ambitious to abandon the prospect of having his daughter a queen.

It would not matter soon, Lord Tywin's opinion, for as a royal princess his daughter would outrank him, only answerable herself to the king, queen and Prince Rhaegar. That was the theory of the matter at least; all of the Seven Kingdoms knew who truly wore the crown, and Cersei did not know that she would ever be able to refuse her father's instruction, no matter how much power she might wield against him.

But mayhaps Rhaegar would. Her intended was a strong-willed man, however much he may dislike conflict, and had a mind to match any other in the Kingdoms, even the great Tywin Lannister. He would surely be able to defend his wife, if he had the will to do so. And if there was one small certain thought amongst Cersei's swirling anxieties, it was that Rhaegar would be more than willing to fight by her side.

A/N: First of all, merry Christmas to those who celebrate it! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if there wasn't a huge amount of actual story content. They're going to be married very soon, I promise! Please review!