12th Month of 299 A.C. Riverrun
Lord Edmure Tully
His wedding was not a night he would forget, not for as long as he lived. He had been so relieved that his bride was not ugly, that he had not known what was going on around him. It shamed him truth be told, to know that as the carnage had been proceeding down below, he had been fucking his new wife. It truly did shame him, and yet in the morning when all was said and done, when Black Walder Frey had come as Edmure thought to mock him and had instead freed him and put him on his way, Edmure had been confused, so very confused, and it was only after speaking with Robb that he had understood, somewhat of this plan, still he did not understand it all, but had done as bid, and fled from the Twins. He had ridden hard, Patrek Mallister and Marq Piper at his side to Riverrun and it was here that he now plotted his next move.
"The king is mad if he thinks this will work. There is no doubt within my mind that we shall be found out, and hung for treason." Marq Piper says. "Why is he so willing to go ahead with this anyway?"
Edmure looks at his friend and says. "I believe it is because he has had enough of the fighting. He wishes to see peace now. Though I am not sure I truly understand it myself."
"It is pure madness. A man such as Tywin Lannister will never truly believe this. We cannot do this. I will not allow you to do this Edmure. Surely you can see how mad it is?" Marq says.
Edmure looks at his friend and then says. "I admit I have my doubts. But Robb has commanded me to do this. And he is my king whether or not this is admitted, he is still my king and I must do as he says."
"We've been fighting a damned war for two years and you would do this now? Why? Pray tell me why you would do this?" Marq exclaims. "The King has clearly gone mad, you saw what he did to his own wife, why should we do whatever he asks of us now?"
"Because he is our king, and I am not an oath breaker." Edmure replies, though he remembers the haunted look in Robb's face and he wonders.
"I cannot believe this. What are you doing this for Edmure? The king? He abandoned you and let you go to that wedding where you nearly fucking died. Why are you allowing him to dictate terms to you?" Marq asks.
"Because he is my god damned king, and that is that. I will not hear any more on it." Edmure says. Turning to his uncle he asks. "When will they be here?"
The Blackfish who looks deeply haggard merely says. "Within the week. I expect that soon enough Black Walder will send men to make the plan go into action. You will need to play your part of course. As will Ser Patrek and Ser Marq here."
"I cannot allow this Edmure. I think it is ridiculous. You cannot seriously be considering doing this." Marq argues. "Patrek surely you agree with me. The man intends to threaten Seagard!"
Patrek Mallister, heir to Seagard and by far a more reasonable man than Marq, looks at him then and says. "I would rather live than die. I would rather live to fight another day then die alone and broken. There is much and more we can do alive Marq, your own father would not want you to die for some false hope. Our king has decided on a course of action, it is time we worked on it and made it happen."
"Why? Why should we do what he is asking us to do? He is sitting there allowing his kingdom to fall into chaos. Why should we give two shits about what he says?" Marq blusters.
His patience fraying, Edmure snaps. "Because he is our king. But not only that, it is a sound plan and one that will ensure that the Riverlands remains whole and out of Lannister control for the foreseeable future. So long as my family is in Riverrun they cannot hold the riverlands properly. And I do not know about you, but I do not want a Frey or a Lannister sat in my home. We shall do this, and we shall do it properly, now are you with us or not Marq?"
The heir to Pink Maiden is silent for a long moment, eventually he responds. "Very well, I do not like this, but I will go along with you and do as our king has asked. And yet I will not be held responsible for when it all comes crashing down. Which it will, I do not think for one moment that Tywin Lannister will truly believe that this is happening without an ulterior motive."
"He will not have another choice." Edmure replies. "It is either this, or the realms fall into chaos and Tywin Lannister is not a man to embrace chaos. Not without some other motive within it for him. He will accept and be thankful for it when it comes to light what we are sparing him."
"He will have his hands full regardless, his sister and her oaf of a husband will begin complaining bitterly when they realise what is happening, and the Tyrells will of course be an issue. Something I do not think Lord Tywin has truly considered, at least not fully." His uncle says.
Edmure nods. "Now," he begins looking at all of them. "I need you all to swear on your lives that you shall do as our king has asked, and that you will not betray the reasoning of this to anyone. Not your wives, your mothers, nor your fathers, not until the time is right. Only then can you truly reveal what is to happen." As the three men swear their oaths to do as asked, Edmure wonders just what it is Robb is planning, he does not fully understand but he will do this, for Cat's boy. Once the men have finished swearing their oaths, he says. "Now you must return to your holdings, and send word of surrender to King's Landing. Uncle, you know what to do for Riverrun."
"Aye." His uncle replies.
"Good." Edmure says, he pauses a moment and then says. "Let us begin then."
King's Landing
Tyrion Lannister
King's Landing was a buzz, it seemed with the wedding of his nephew the king and Lady Margaery all sorts of things were happening. The darkness and despair that had so affected the city in the lead up to Stannis Baratheon's attack was gone, replaced by joy and happiness, and yet Tyrion could not share in it. He resented almost everything, he did not want this, he wanted recognition yet it was not going to come to him, not with anything he did. Gods he was angry. And now this council meeting was something else. All looked happy, yet he did not understand why. "Who have you killed now Your Grace?" Tyrion asks jokingly as he sits down next to Mace Tyrell, the blustering buffoon of Highgarden.
To his surprise his nephew replies. "Robb Stark is dead."
"What?" Tyrion asks surprised.
"I said, Robb Stark and his whore of a mother are dead. Can you not hear imp?" the king replies.
"How did they die?" Tyrion asks, ignoring his nephew and speaking to his father.
"At Edmure Tully's wedding. It seems Walder Frey was not suitably satisfied with Robb Stark's apology. And as such decided to take his feelings out on the boy and his mother as well as the northmen and rivermen who were there." his father replies.
"I want his head brought to King's Landing. They removed his head from his body and attached it to his direwolf you know." His nephew says conversationally. "I want his head brought to King's Landing so I might make Sansa kiss it."
"Your Grace, cannot mean that surely!" uncle Kevan says. "Lady Sansa is your aunt by marriage. Such a thing is unthinkable."
"Oh I mean it. I want to see her kiss her traitor brother's mouth. That can be her wedding present to me." Joffrey says.
"No." Tyrion says. "You will not do this. Sansa is not yours to torment anymore Your Grace. She is mine to protect, and I will not let you do this."
"Then I will remove your head and make your wife kiss it. Maybe then you might finally give her some pleasure." The king snarls.
"You are very welcome to try Your Grace. But I will see your men killed before they get anywhere close enough to try and kill me. And then I will come for you. I am dwarf you see, and we do not take well to being threatened." Tyrion says.
"Enough!" Lord Tywin thunders. "Enough. We are not children to be fighting amongst ourselves. Robb Stark and his men are dead, and whatever else happens, the north is now ripe for the taking. With Lord Roose dead at the wedding as well, the northmen shall begin fighting amongst themselves. They will be desperate for a return to order, and you Tyrion shall present them with their liege lord's daughter. They will bend to her and that will be that. An army will of course go north with you, and ensure order."
Tyrion is surprised by this. He looks at his father then and asks. "When will we depart?"
"After the wedding. There are other things that need sorting out here before you leave, and the northmen must know fear first, before you can go and restore order." His father says. There is a pause and then the man says. "Pycelle, there has been news from the Riverlands has there not, tell me what has come."
The old maester is silent a moment and then he responds. "Lords Bracken, Mallister, Piper and Vance have all offered their surrender in light of their king's death. Furthermore the garrison of Riverrun has offered surrender as well."
"Brynden Tully surrendered? By the gods what is this world coming to?" Tyrion muses aloud.
"The Blackfish is a smart man and he knows he cannot hold with his nephew in chains in the Twins." Randyll Tarly says.
"I want them dead. I do not want them to bend, I want them dead. They are traitors, and traitors deserve only death." The king says.
"If that was the case, then none of us would be sitting here, and Stannis Baratheon would be sat the Iron Throne. The Tyrells are the reason you have a head on your shoulders Your Grace, and that's not just because of the aid they gave at the Blackwater. Lord Tyrell here is keeping the city alive with his food. I would think first before you speak." Tyrion says chidingly.
His nephew looks at him with contempt. "My goodfather was never a traitor. But the Starks and their allies always have been. It is only right that they die for their treason. To give them the same fate as their leader, and to replace them with men who know their honour."
"For once my son speaks sense Your Grace." Lord Tywin says, and Tyrion is so surprised that the man is speaking in favour of him he nearly falls off his chair. "If an enemy continues to fight then you crush it. But if an enemy gets to bended knee, you help lift them back to their feet and give them promise of fair justice. Otherwise there would be none left to rule."
Tyrion watches as the king and Lord Tywin stare at one another, as this contest goes on and on, Tyrion desperately wants to take a drink but he dare not bring attention to himself, instead he merely watches it unfold with morbid fascination. He smiles when the king breaks away first and says. "I still think they should be killed. But whatever. Do whatever you want old man, just don't come running to me when they rebel again." with that the king stands up and walks out of the council meeting. Tyrion risks a glance at his father, and sees that his expression is like that of thunder. The last time he saw his father's face like that was when he was brought before his father after he had married Tysha, the memory of what happened after that still haunts him to this day. Involuntarily he shivers.