AN: Phew, another chapter done and dusted. This is the extra chapter I promised last time. And it is my biggest yet. Finally hit the 3k mark. I'll keep increasing chapter sizes till I start hitting 5k consistently before deciding future course

Let me tell you, writing about a tourney is not nearly as easy as reading about one. It's so easy to fall for all the clichés doing the rounds in so many other stories. I wanted to add a personal flavour to mine which you will read in just a bit. And it's not over yet.

Canon divergence has started, as you will find out from the conversation between Baelish and Sansa. In canon, the two barely talk until Ned Stark's execution.

In other news, still need a BETA so drop me a message if anyone is interested.

Chapter 5

Sansa rode to the tourney grounds in a litter with Jeyne Poole and Septa Mordane. Arya was inexplicably absent, attending her dancing lessons. The litter had curtains of red silk that turned the whole world crimson. Beyond the city walls, she spotted a hundred tents with sigils from all over the seven kingdoms. There was the Manderly Mermaid, the hooded man of Banefort, the red chevronels of Rosby, the black warhammers of Rykker, the silver arrows of Hunter. The Dornish houses were few and far between but she was told that had been the trend since the rebellion.

The common folk came in thousands to watch the the games. The splendor of it all took Sandra's breath away. The shining armour, the charges draped in silver and gold, the banners whipping about in the wind, the shouting people, the knights themselves..., most of all the knights.

"It's better than the songs" she whispered to Jeyne, who just nodded along, her eyes fixed on the purple lightning of House Dondarrion.

They took the seats saved for them among the lords and the ladies who were important guests of the royal family. Sansa could feel many an eye on her. After all, she did look good. She was dressed in a blue velvet dress that brought out the colour of her eyes.

"You must be our Lord Hand's daughter. You look just like your mother" Sansa's attention was suddenly caught by a man who she did not recognise. He wore a heavy lined with fur and held together by a mockingbird brooch. His hair had silver streaks going through it and his face was pointed with a pointy beard. He took one auburn lock in his hand and caressed her cheek. She did not recognise him but for the sake of courtesy replied demurely," I am Sansa Stark"

Septa Mordane spoke up from beside her,"Sweet child, this is Lord Petyr Baelish, he is on the king's small council."

Lord Baelish bowed at that and took a seat she had been saving for Prince Joffrey "Your mother and I were friends. We both grew up together at Riverrun. She was once my queen of love and beauty."

"She speaks often about you my lord, she remembers you fondly" Sansa replied. Her mother had never spoken about him, but she remembered her manners.

"I am sure she does, as do I. So how do you like the tourney today. We have an impressive list of knights competing. Six of the seven Kingsguard, the Clegane brothers, and quite a few lords and heirs from all over the realm."

"It is very pleasant my lord." Sansa felt uncomfortable near the man but he refused to leave. She couldn't think of anything to make him leave, he was a high lord and on the king's small council no less. She couldn't be discourteous to someone like that. So she settled to watch the tourney hoping her Prince would come soon and take his rightful place beside her. To her dismay, when prince Joffrey arrived, he took his place besides his mother Queen Cersei, leaving her to bear the company of Lord Petyr Baelish.

It wasn't really that bad. The man had a smooth way of talking and always had a smirk gracing his lips, like he knew some internal joke that none of the others were privy to. He knew a lot, and told Sansa about all the men jousting in the rings.

The jousts were a delight to watch as well. She watched Ser Jaime Lannister throw down the marcher Lord Bryce Caron. Ser Barristan won his round against See Andar Royce who was twenty years younger than the elderly commander of the Kingsguard. Jory made winterfell proud by unhorsing Ser Horas Redwyne but Alyn lost to Sr Meryn Trant and Harwin to Ser Balon Swann. The Hound and his brother were ruthless, unhorsing their opponents with such force that they were sent flying.

Ser Loras Tyrell of Highgarden was perhaps the most beautiful knight she had ever seen. His armour had gilded golden roses and sapphires enamelled on it. His cape was made of the most beautiful blooms. He unhorsed his opponent, a Ser Hosteen Frey with such grace and ease, it looked like he was going through the motions of a southern dance. After the joust, he came over to Sansa and gave her a red rose, proclaiming her beauty for all the Lords and the ladies to hear. If she didn't have every eye in the stands on her before, she did now. She was blushing long after See Loras left.

"Ahh, what do we have here, a mystery knight. Those always spice things up. I wonder who that is." Lord Baelish suddenly caught her attention, breaking her out of her musings about the beauty of Ser Loras and what it would feel like to run her hands through those wavy brunette locks on his head.

She looked down to the grounds and sure enough, a knight dressed in armour black as the night had come up. There were red streaks running through his armour, like the leaping embers of a fire. He had a shield with a weird burning crimson bird painted on it. On second thought, those red streaks looked more like the burning feathers of a bird, snaking around his torso.

The knight wasn't particularly tall. He also had a somewhat slight built to him. Nevertheless, there was an aura about him which compelled you to look his way. It was perhaps in the way he held himself, or the self assured way he sat his horse, Sansa couldn't put her finger to the reason. His helm was more menacing than the hound's snarling one. It had two wicked horns the length of short daggers protruding from either side. The horns were twisted around the middle. Near the head, each horn had an additional horn jutting straight up. There was a single long slit down the middle for air. The helm gave him the appearance of a demon come straight from one of the seven hells. Even Old Nan's tales never spoke of a monster so intimidating.

Murmurs of a Targaryen Prince back from exile started spreading about. Every single person in the audience was interested to know the identity of this mystery knight.

"Who is he ? Do we know where he is from ?" Jeyne spoke up, giving voice to the question that was plaguing all of their minds.

"I am afraid I do not know. I guess we will have to wait for him to be unhorsed to learn how identity. With Lord Jason Mallister as his opponent, I feel it won't be too long." Lord Baelish then went on to tell them about how Lord Mallister had singlehandedly cut down three of Rhaegar Targaryen's bannermen at the trident and slewn Lord Balon Greyjoy's eldest son during the Greyjoy rebellion.

A mystery knight vs a famed Lord. Sansa couldn't have asked for a more fitting battle in her first tourney. One way or another, people would be talking about this tourney for a long time.

************HARRY POV*************

This was it. The moment of truth was finally here. He was sitting atop his courser, at one end of the lists, with a Lance in one hand and a shield in another, waiting for the signal to charge. His armour had done a good enough job of catching everyone's attention. The decision to use a Phoenix as his sigil was an impulsive one. Phoenix was the beast he felt the closest to in his previous life. A Phoenix had saved his life when the situation had seemed beyond unwinnable. He wanted a Phoenix near him to give him strength today as well.

Thousands upon thousands of people were looking at him. His father, his mother was looking at him. He couldn't shame himself by losing the first joust itself. He had hoped for an easier opponent, some hedge knight or a newly knighted squire like him, but he guessed the man pulling the draws wanted to make it entertaining for the people by pitting him against Jason Mallister. The man had been jousting for nearly 3 decades. There was no trick in the book the man didn't know about.

But all of that didn't matter. Because Harry was going to win today. He was going to win and show his parents his worth. He would show them that while Joffrey sat scared holding onto his mother's skirts, he was fighting against men with experience twice his age.

The signal finally came. With a swift kick, his horse Nimbus sprinted forth. The sounds of the crowd dimmed. All he could hear was the thundering of the horse's feet. All he could see was Jason Mallister's exposed shoulder over his shield. So that was where he pointed his Lance. The two met in a furious crash of splintering lances. Harry barely managed to stay atop his horse. Jason's Lance had somehow sneaked past his shield and scored a hit on his left shoulder. He could feel a bruise colouring his left shoulder. His lance had failed to score a hit, splintering on Mallister's shield.

Harry realized he was out of his depth in this joust. Screw it, he wasn't going to play fair anymore. There was no way he was going to get out of this tilt with his pride and muscles intact if he continued like this. He had to use his ace, his magic. He was hoping to use it a little later in advanced rounds but a draw against Mallister had forced his hand. It wasn't like he was going to cheat for the first time. After all, he got his spurs in the first place by duping Mandon Moore.

Jason Mallister turned around the corner and came charging at him once more, intending to knock him off and finish the match. Harry shifted his shield to his right hand and the lance to his left. To the spectators, it might appear to be a desperate but foolish tactic. After all, the first lesson of jousting was to always strike with your dominant hand. Or more like the second lesson. The first one was to always stay on your horse.

This seemingly strange tactic was necessary for what Harry was up to. Being right handed, he was more adept at casting with his right hand, even at wandless magic. Holding his shield up to defend his body, Harry activated one of the runes on the inside of his shield with his magic. The rune was an attraction matrix. It applied a subtle compulsion on people, attracting their attention towards it and away from the real danger. This time when the two combatants closed in, Jason Mallister's lance struck the shield right in the centre, the strongest part, and splintered harmlessly. With his attention grabbed by the strange burning bird, Jason Mallister failed to cover his flank, receiving a hit so solid, he was sent flying out of his seat into the dirt.

The Lord of Seagard appeared confused and dazed as Harry savoured in the sweet taste of his victory at the tourney, the first of many more to come. The Phoenix had risen and none could stand before it.

*********Sansa POV***********

The crowd gaped in shock to see Lord Mallister fly out of his seat atop the horse. The first tilt had gone just as everyone seemed to have expected. The mystery knight charged down at Lord Jason, who shifted deftly in his seat at the last moment to catch the opponent's lance on his shield while sneaking his own just over the opponent's shield. It was a maneuver worth of praise. She doubted the mystery knight even realized when Lord Jason had shifted. She herself hadn't , but Lord Baelish had helpfully enlightened her.

Somehow the mystery knight managed to retain his seat in the saddle. She had to applaud his resolve, that blow seemed to have hurt a lot. Lord Petyr gave the mystery knight one final tilt before he bit the dust. Yet something changed. The mystery knight switched his shield and lance, earning scoffs from the more experienced section of the viewers. He came charging once again, but this time, Lord Jason inexplicably missed, hitting the shield right in the centre on perhaps the painted burning bird's eye. The mystery knight struck hard and true, unhorsing Lord allister and earning his first victory of the day.

The crowd seemed to be shocked into silence. Then, as one, the spell was broken and the commonfolk broke into frenzied euphoria. The grounds started ringing with applause and praise for the mystery knight. The highborn Lords and ladies broke into furious whispers, like a hornet's nest disturbed by an errant gust.

"What do you know, he won after all. This tourney is going to be more interesting than it seemed this morning" Lord Baelish quipped with that self assured smirk of his.

"I am afraid I do not catch your meaning my Lord," Sansa replied. Sure, the mystery knight's win was surprising, but such upsets were a regular affair at a tourney, or so she had read in many a books.

"Look at the King sweet girl. What do you see ?" Lord Baelish asked.

Sansa turned towards the king, who seemed to be speaking to Ser Barristan. She didn't seem to find anything out of the ordinary .

"Look closely my dear, what do you really see ?" Lord Baelish asked again, seemingly reading her thoughts.

Sansa didn't want to disappoint. If she failed such a simple test as observation, surely the word would spread around that she was incompetent and an airhead.

"The king is talking to Lord Barristan. He seems agitated, almost furious."

"And what could have possibly angered the king ?"

"I... I do not see what it could have been."

"Look at the mystery knight, Sansa. Which house has a sigil with a beast related to fire ? Which house has the colours black and red ? Which is the house the king is known to hate with a passion ?"

"House Targaryen" Sansa murmured, remembering her lessons on the rebellion. "But.. But it couldn't possibly be.. "

"Couldn't it ? Tourney is an excellent place to recruit houses sympathetic to your cause. The armour is obviously expensive so this is no hedge knight out to make a name for himself. The difference in sigil doesn't matter. The knight couldn't have possibly come in prancing with a three headed dragon. No, he needed deniability but at the same time, he needed to send out a clear message. What is important is the symbolism and this knight displays that in droves."

"So what will happen now ? Will they arrest him ? But he hasn't committed any crime ?" Sansa protested.

"Ohh no, my dear. But they can't let him leave unchallenged either. He could rouse all the hidden Targaryen sympathizers, and the realm could once again witness a war. All I can say is that this tourney is about to get a whole lot difficult for our mystery knight" Lord Baelish replied, once again smirking as if reminiscing a joke he alone knew.

"Thank you, Lord Baelish for helping me understand. I couldn't have possibly thought of all the hidden meanings and symbolism underneath the facade presented."

A strange glint came in Lord Baelish's eyes. He raised his hand to once again push a curl of auburn hair behind her ears. He leaned in to whisper into her ears,"You can always count on me Sansa. King's Landing is a place rife with intrigue and plots. Every man and every women here is working towards their interests and they are all so much more experienced than you. But I can help you navigate all the swamps of politics. After all, I was a very close friend of your mother. I feel obligated to help her daughter for the love I still bear her. Besides, as our future queen, you will need people at your side, watching out for your interests. Intrigue is the name of the game Sansa and you need to stay two steps ahead." Sansa could smell mint and cinnamon as his breath ghosted against her cheek.

Hearing the word queen sent Sansa's heart aflutter. She could see that she had judged Lord Baelish perhaps a little too harshly. The man was a friend of mother's and was looking out for her. Besides, he was in the King's small council. That was no small position. Sansa was thankful such an important and powerful person was looking out for her. Bowing her head slightly and batting her eyelashes, Sansa said" I am truly grateful for your assistance my Lord. I can see that my mother had a true friend in you and I wish we could be just as good friends."

"Ohh, I intend to make our relationship just as... strong and deep as the one I had with your mother, Sansa." Once again, that smirk. She couldn't think what was there to smirk about now.

Lord Baelish seemed to straighten up suddenly and spoke,"I'm afraid I must take my leave now, Lady Sansa. It seems your father is here and my job of keeping you company is unnecessary now. I would appreciate you not spreading word of our little arrangement. The best weapon you could have in the game of politics is the one no one knows about."

Sansa understood the implication of Lord Baelish's words and nodded her head in acquiescence. Lord Baelish took his leave and his seat was soon occupied by father. Sansa could see creases on his forehead and bags underneath his eyes. Her father was overworked, anyone could see that. It seemed like he had aged almost 10 years in the month they bad spent at King's Landing. Perhaps the city didn't agree with everyone after all.

"I see that you have met Lord Baelish. Might I enquire what you were talking about?" Her father spoke in that rich baritone of his.

Sansa wanted to tell him all about lost Targaryens and hidden plots but Lord Baelish's warning echoed in her mind. "Lord Baelish was chaperoning us while we waited for you father. He didn't think maidens like us should sit alone without an escort with how people tend to get uncouth after a drink too many at tourneys. He told us about all the knights that are fighting today. Did you know father, Thoros of Myr, the bald red priest, was the first an through the breach at pyke during the greyhound rebellion?"

"Yes Sansa, I was there, remember? And Lord Baelish has my thanks for looking after you."

Sansa bowed her head, relieved that she had managed to avert her father's questions. She realized that it was the first time she had lied to her parents in such an overt manner. Lying didn't feel so unlady-like after all.

AN: Let me know in the reviews what you thought about the chapter. Was Sansa naive and air-headed enough. Was Littlefinger creepy and perverted enough or do I "amp it up" a bit ! What do you think about Harry 'cheating' his way through the tourney. Hopefully it wasn't a surprise. Ajj who am I kidding, I wanted it to be a surprise. Shocked audiences is the bread and butter of any writer anywhere in the world.

Harry has the innate characteristics of a Slytherin and he grew up in the ruthless world of Westeros. He will use every advantage available to him. He is no Hufflepuff so don't expect fair play.

Let me know what you think in the review section.

Next chapter: Enter Myrcella