A/N: My apologies for the later than usual update. I wrote some stuff for tumblr appreciation week (Melisandre and Arya/Gendry) and in the midst of it I got fatigued and went through a rough patch. Anyway, hoping you all enjoy the update :)
Chapter 88: Tyrion
Tyrion Lannister made certain he was amongst the party to welcome Aegon Targaryen and his men. Daenerys waited within Casterly Rock. Tyrion needed to be amongst the first to see Aegon, to have a chance to smooth ruffled feathers and know something of what lay in the other Targaryen camp.
He will be angry with me but I might have a chance to talk myself out of it.
He did manage to avoid Daenerys snicking his head off and she had no prior acquaintance with him. Aegon had seemed to find him amusing at the very least as long as Tyrion resisted the urge to bait him. The princeling even had Connington save Tyrion's life, not that Tyrion appreciated it at the time.
Connington will be the real challenge. Even if Aegon accepts the tale that cold whoreson will want me dead regardless.
He rode forth under Ser Barristan's wary eye, Grey Worm and his unsullied keeping close as well as Rakharo and some of the Dothraki. Tyrion did not like that. He would rather the sellswords be in his company than the Dothraki but Dany was not a complete fool.
She knows they cannot be trusted.
The Unsullied and the Dothraki were blindly loyal to Daenerys. The Kingsguard knight however appeared strained. He is fond of his silver queen but he now fears that he supports the wrong claimant. Many voiced doubts over Aegon's true identity and Tyrion knew Ser Barristan must be one hoping that Aegon was a pretender. Tyrion himself did not much care either way.
Whoever plays the game best will win out in the end.
Tyrion wondered what schemes the eunuch and cheesemonger had in play. They would have to know by now that Dany was no pliant girl who might melt at the sight of a pretty face claiming to be her nephew. Illyrio said it himself when Tyrion was in his company. Daenerys is a true Targaryen and the blood of Aegon the Conqueror runs through her veins. Aegon would need to keep that in mind if he had any hope of success.
It all depends on if he still wants to keep to the plan. He is still unwed.
His prompt response to Tyrion's invitation seemed to suggest he still hoped to make the match. Tyrion remembered the prince's fury when Tyrion suggested Daenerys might refuse him. He has spent years in Westeros now, years battling and still waiting. Tyrion wondered what effect those years had on the lad. The rumours about Arya Stark came to mind.
Could he truly have been so foolish?
They slowed as they drew closer to the camp and Tyrion eyed his companions warily. They are going to make things difficult. He needed to watch his tongue, bide his time and see how things played out. It would be much easier if he had freedom but Dany seemed even more suspicious since taking Casterly Rock.
She expects some sort of betrayal.
At least Victarion had not accompanied them. The Ironborn captain retreated to his ships, brooding on Dany's anger at his hiding the information about Aegon. I might have been selective in what I told her too but I would have been far more clever about it. Tyrion would have offered Dany enough information to let her think any omissions were accidental. The captain executed the men he claimed were responsible for the secrets, he held them up as an example while Dany watched on not quite impassively.
He only gained himself some time. He can blame Euron all he likes but Dany is not convinced and neither am I.
Tyrion's horse moved restlessly beneath him and he glanced back over his shoulder at the Rock. I have finally returned but it still is not mine. He waited on the whims of hopeful kings and queens. When he looked back in front of him the banners of the visitors' camp began to come into clearer view. The Targaryen banner featured prominently but that was no surprise.
Ser Barristan spoke alongside Tyrion, telling Greyworm of which House each banner represented.
"The Golden Company is with them."
Tyrion heard the tone of Ser Barristan's voice. That is a misstep on Aegon's part. The old knight fought against the Golden Company, cutting through them to slay Maelys the Monstrous, the last of the Blackfyre pretenders. Tyrion ignored the whispers. He wanted to see who else came to the party. He did not see the Griffins which puzzled him. He did see banners from the Riverlands, the Blackwoods and Pipers and the trout of House Tully.
What is that foolish boy playing at?
Daenerys knew her history or at least, her half mad brother's version of it. She knew House Tully fought against the Targaryen cause. She also knew that the Golden Company laughed at Viserys when he asked for their help. She will not take this well. The next banners he spotted made him feel true foreboding. It was unmistakably the gold spear piercing a red sun on an orange field.
The last time I greeted that banner the man behind it almost cost me my life.
Tyrion could handle the Tully he knew must be behind the leaping trout flapping in the wind. He held prisoners within the Rock, Edmure Tully and Jeyne Westerling. Roslin Tully had been brought from the Twins too at some point prior to it falling though she did not see her lord husband until Tyrion had him freed and put under guard. Roslin appeared miserable and only her child brought her out of it. Tyrion expected some communication about them, especially with the Tully heir growing by the day. What did give him pause was Martells.
Surely it is not Doran.
The gods would not be so kind as that. He heard Ser Barristan speculating beside him but the old man did not know them as Tyrion did. Selmy had left long before the Dornish visited Kings Landing. Selmy assumed Doran had made the trip but Tyrion knew him to be too ill. We are not dealing with a grieving father. It would not be a cautious man.
Aegon seemed to have brought a fair share of the strength of his army with him. Tyrion ran his eye over the pitched camp and wondered if it would be war. If he even thinks it the dragons will settle that quickly. Of course that depended on whether Dany might use them freely. While he was thinking a small party rode forth to greet them.
"Who comes?" a female voice rang out.
Tyrion quickly spurred his horse forward and the others followed him. He reined up not far from the mounted and armoured welcome party.
"Tyrion of House Lannister," he replied.
He heard the others echo him with their own names but paid it little mind. Tyrion felt the same unease as he had that day, years earlier, when he saw the Dornish leader sitting slim and graceful in the saddle. The woman sat a sand steed and a young man beside her held the banner of Sunspear. Dornish banners flew behind her in the camp but Tyrion did not look away. She was buried in winter furs but she wore a high helm without the copper suns Oberyn bedecked everything in. In fact she wore nothing representing House Martell at all despite riding under the banner.
It cannot be the princess. She would not dress below her station.
"My lady," Tyrion said politely. "I have not had the pleasure."
The man riding nearby her, a man Tyrion did have the pleasure of having met before, laughed. It echoed in his helm until he lifted his visor. Tyrion remembered the smile only it was not directed towards him.
"You are greeting the Lady Nymeria, my lord of Lannister," Brynden Tully informed him. "Whether it will be a pleasure remains to be seen."
He manages to make the name Lannister sound like a blunt insult even as he smiles.
Tyrion knew this game. He smiled back even as the Dornishwoman removed her helm to reveal the widow's peak she shared with her late father. She gave him a charming smile but Tyrion had seen those eyes before. Pray tell me, when will the justice be served? He could hear her say it now, just as Oberyn had so many times.
Blood will be spilled over this.
Tyrion knew the Sand Snakes by reputation only but they were famed. He murmured his greeting before looking over the banners once more. Mayhaps Aegon is not a complete fool. He made a show of looking over the different sigils and taking note of those he did not see. He did know that if Aegon formed one of the party he was hiding himself well. Tyrion thought back to the Shy Maid.
He never was one to like hiding.
"Is our guest of honour not with you?" Tyrion asked.
A different man answered, a Lyseni who almost looked like a woman.
"The King is in camp holding council," he said dismissively. "You will attend him once he is done."
Tyrion heard muttering behind him. The unsullied remained silent but Tyrion suspected from the limited Dothraki he had learned that he heard the word coward. Tyrion thought something rather different.
"You are welcome to the hospitality of Casterly Rock," he said. "Aegon might be more comfortable greeting Daenerys within the shelter of the castle."
Brynden Tully gave him a knowing smile which showed that he knew as well as Tyrion that the Targaryen's each sought the upper hand in the first meeting. He knows as well as I do the advantage of meeting on your own terms. It was Nymeria who spoke in reply.
"Aegon is comfortable enough for now," she said in an airy tone. "Is Daenerys too busy burning people to meet us herself?"
Ser Barristan sucked in his breath beside Tyrion. Tyrion made himself smile. This is a test and two can play at this game. He expected Aegon to betray his eagerness for the dragons but clearly they meant to test the waters first. The Dornish will prey on any guilt she still carries but the others will test her restraint. The choice of companions confused Tyrion but he hid that.
"Daenerys holds court," he said politely. "I do not see the direwolf of Stark amongst your banners. Has the Lady Arya's alliance with Aegon come to an end?"
He saw Brynden Tully's expression darken and knew he landed his blow. Nymeria Sand laughed and Tyrion did not like the way she looked at him.
"The wolves have been called to the North," she told him. "It is most sorrowful for me though I'm sure you might sleep better." She smiled a sinister smile. "Arya and I have shared views on justice and a common interest in Lannisters."
Tyrion made himself smile and nod. May the Mother have mercy on us. He supposed that the absence of Arya Stark made things a little easier with Daenerys at least aside from avoiding the girl mayhaps acting on a grudge against him. The situation might be better controlled though the truth of the rumours about the girl would be a little more difficult to determine. It seemed the Dornish might be Dany's larger concern.
What might have called the Stark girl North now? Mayhaps Aegon sent her North at the prospect of dragons. If Tyrion had to choose between a woman and the chance of a dragon he suspected he might make a similar choice. He pushed the memory of Tysha away as he thought on it.
Tyrion's part in the exchange halted momentarily when Ser Barristan intervened to swap pleasantries with Brynden Tully. They know one another from the war. It served to ease tension and they entered the camp peacefully enough when urged. Tyrion listened closely to the conversation when it resumed, keeping a wary eye on Nymeria Sand.
"Ser Brynden," Ser Barristan said politely. "Are you here about Lord Edmure?"
Brynden Tully hesitated before answering with much more warmth and respect than he showed Tyrion.
"That is the larger part of my reason for coming Ser. I also speak as the Hand of the King."
That makes things even more interesting. Tyrion knew Connington would not hear him and his influence over Aegon was strong. If Connington is not Hand then something went awry. He waited while the two knights spoke about the hostage Lord Edmure.
"What befell Lord Connington?" Tyrion asked.
The Lyseni responded.
"He fell taking Kings Landing. If you are wise you will not speak of it to Aegon."
Tyrion saw the tension at the mention of Connington's name but he buried his curiosity for the moment. For once I might hold my tongue. He could find out how Connington met his end later. In the meantime he needed to keep his wits about him as they were escorted into the heart of Aegon's camp. Many of the men only glanced at them, seeming far more preoccupied with looking at the sky.
They watch for the dragons.
"Is there any news of my lady wife?" he asked Brynden Tully after he dismounted and they were shown through to a tent to wait.
The knight stopped still and frowned at Tyrion.
"Your kinslaying cursed the both of you. It pains me to think of what Cat's daughter might have suffered for being attached to you."
It was on the tip of Tyrion's tongue to tell him a thing or two about what being attached to Sansa had done to him. He will not want to hear it. Everybody believed Tyrion to be Joffrey's killer.
"I take it that is a no then," he replied instead.
Brynden Tully gave him a long look and did not answer. Tyrion and the rest of his companions were left with Nymeria Sand and soon greeted by newer faces. Tyrion did not know these men, their names were not familiar. They watched Nymeria warily while the Dornishwoman sat and spoke with an uncomfortable Barristan Selmy. The Sand Snake made no more mention of burning but the tension remained.
They supped on meagre food and dregs of wine before being brought to another tent. Aegon Targaryen sat on a campstool, his head bent over a book. Braziers spread enough warmth that the young man did not wear furs. Instead he wore a black doublet, the three headed dragon etched into the front of it. He closed the book quickly when they were announced and raised his head to look at them. Tyrion saw the narrowed eyes and the twist of the young man's mouth before his features fell into a smile.
"I thought you dead Hugor."
Tyrion thought quickly before responding. "I am as surprised at my living as you are Your Grace.
He tilted his head to look at Aegon while the Targaryen pondered his words. The young man was still lithe and Tyrion expected if he stood he would be even taller than when they last met. Minus the blue hair he was more comely, his eyes clearly violet and his hair silver gold like Daenerys'. A crown sat atop his head and he wore it as confidently as might be expected of a Targaryen. He sported a scar down one side of his face but unlike the wound inflicted on Tyrion, Aegon's seemed more of a minor blemish with all his other advantages than a true disfigurement.
"Yes," Aegon said slowly. "You live and you are now well acquainted with my Aunt. Lord Connington said you wanted to escape us."
Tyrion did not see the smiling lad he once met before him. He wished the others were not present.
"You must not think I planned this," he replied, using his best wounded voice.
"Must I?" Aegon stopped smiling. "Somebody once told me to trust no one."
Tyrion did not have to think long to remember who said it. Well he has me there. Before he had the chance to respond Aegon looked away and beckoned to the woman behind him. Tyrion saw her when he entered. She at least had given him a fairly warm smile, playful as she always seemed to be.
"My lady," Aegon said softly. "Will you bring our guests some of the Dornish red?"
Lemore rose and Tyrion noted she did not wear her septa's robes. She is dressed like a highborn lady. He took a cup and managed to avoid the temptation to look down her gown as she poured the wine. Lemore gave him another smile before she stood tall again. Tyrion took a good mouthful of the wine, watching Nymeria Sand move to Aegon's side. She watched him with amusement and her eyes flicked to his cup. Tyrion spat the wine back into it.
"You are not drinking wine Your Grace?"
Aegon gave him a long look before glancing at the lady Nymeria. He began to laugh.
"You promised you would behave my lady Nym."
Nymeria Sand smiled. "I did as you asked Your Grace. If the Imp thinks we might harm him that it his own guilt speaking." She quickly approached, took the cup from Tyrion's hand and sipped from it. "Fear not, it is not poisoned."
Tyrion eyed her warily when he took the cup back and drank the contents. He remembered the others in the tent and turned to look. Ser Barristan had refused wine but he was staring at Lemore. Grey Worm stood like a statue looking at Aegon and Rakharo's eyes scanned the tent as though he expected some treachery. Tyrion returned his attention to Ser Barristan before looking back to Lemore. The septa looked uncomfortable.
"You knew the Lady Ashara Dayne did you not Ser?" Aegon asked.
Tyrion studied him, wondering what game he played. Ser Barristan was tasked with finding out what he might about Aegon. They all were but Tyrion knew the Kingsguard knight was Dany's most trusted man in terms of information about her family. She tasked him above all others with determining the truth of whether Aegon was indeed a pretender.
He might be a famed knight but he behaves now like a fool.
"I did," Ser Barristan said stiffly. "She was one of Princess Elia's ladies in waiting. I thought her dead."
Tyrion knew the story. The sister of Ser Arthur Dayne threw herself from a tower. Her body was never found. He looked at Selmy again and saw how pale the knight was. He followed his gaze once more to Lemore. The lady had lowered her eyes and she looked flushed.
"Forgive me ser," she murmured. "The lie was necessary to keep Aegon safe."
Tyrion wanted to laugh now. He wished Varys were there so he might determine how many plots within plots the eunuch still kept buried from him. I knew she had secrets but I was too busy thinking with my cock to pry further after uncovering Aegon and Connington. He took some enjoyment from Ser Barristan's discomfort. The knight always looked upon Tyrion with silent judgement.
It is about time he felt the sting of being kept out of confidences.
The rest of the tale was much as Tyrion might have surmised. He waddled over to a campstool as Ashara told it and managed to seat himself. He even managed to get hold of the wine Ser Barristan had rejected. When silence fell Selmy still looked wounded.
"Varys might have told me."
Aegon paused for the briefest of moments. "You were serving the usurper."
Tyrion began to feel a twinge of sympathy for the knight. The words were mere fact and not said unkindly but they impacted all the same. Grey Worm managed to break through the tension to ask a question Tyrion might have asked himself.
"Why did you bring so many men to meet Her Grace?" he asked in High Valyrian.
Aegon smiled and replied in the same tongue. "I might have brought less but as it was I still brought fewer than I might have. There are many I left disappointed. Those from the Riverlands want to recover their liege lord, the rest..."
Tyrion finished his sentence. "They want to see the dragons."
He waited some time for the opportunity he had hoped for. Aegon dismissed him rather abruptly and he was escorted from the tent. He joined the other Unsullied and Dothraki musing all the while over what they might be speaking of in his absence. A messenger left the camp, sent to notify Daenerys of the delay and to tell her that her envoys were enjoying Aegon's hospitality. Tyrion grinned at the last part of the message.
"You are invited to join them."
Dany would be impatient inside the castle but Tyrion did not doubt she would remain there. She had been Queen far longer than Aegon had been King. She knows how these games are played. Tyrion felt impatient himself but his was more an impatience for the knowledge he sought. He finally received the summons to return to Aegon's presence. Brynden Tully and Aegon alone remained in the tent though two Kingsguard knights kept a close watch over proceedings.
"How did you manage to convince them to let you see me on my own Your Grace?" he asked.
Aegon did not break eye contact.
"I told them I would not see Daenerys until I received answers from you. They do not seem to like you much."
"I cannot possibly think why Your Grace," Tyrion replied. "I am such a likeable fellow. Did they tell you how I came to be in their company?"
Aegon nodded but he did not smile. "They still think I wish you ill."
Tyrion gave him a wary look.
"After the greeting from the Lady Nymeria I cannot imagine why."
The corners of Aegon's mouth quirked.
"It might have been worse. I took care in choosing which of my cousins might accompany me."
Tyrion raised an eyebrow. "There are worse?"
Aegon did not answer him. Instead he pushed his hair out of his eyes and studied the palm of his hand with a frown.
"Were you truly taken from Selhorys against your will?"
Tyrion hoped he looked suitably offended.
"I advised you to return to Westeros with an army to trouble my sweet sister Your Grace. Do you truly think I meant to miss her downfall?"
He saw Brynden Tully frown.
"She is your sister."
Tyrion made a dismissive gesture.
"She has always hated me. She wanted me dead long before I thought to harm her and I owe her a debt. A Lannister pays his debts."
Ser Brynden still looked disapproving, uttering "kinslayer" as a curse. Aegon looked rather less disapproving.
"You might find her," he said. "Cersei eluded us but you might find her. You know the West. You know where she might go."
Tyrion studied his expression and recognised it. It was hatred. Tyrion knew hatred well. He nodded. He had suspicions as to what Cersei might do though but the thought of her without her full power as Queen gave him pause. Cersei without all the authority and trimmings of Kings Landing almost did not seem like the Cersei he knew.
She will be desperate and fuelled by rage.
"I still do not trust you," Aegon proclaimed, "but you may earn my trust again if you give me leal service. I need to know of my Aunt. I see she will not come to me and I must know what to expect."
Tyrion did not bother to feign surprise. He knew the moment he was summoned that Aegon would ask this of him. He made a show of thinking before he responded.
"Daenerys will pretend to be naive but for the most part it is not true. She is very much as I described to you when I spoke of her on the Shy Maid. She is a conqueror and she has the pride expected of a queen. I do not believe she will offer you a dragon but she will not burn you on sight. I hear that Prince Quentyn approached the dragons without her and that sealed his doom. They are wild and there are few people they like."
He was not surprised to see Aegon's expression darken. He is wroth at the idea of her refusing him a dragon. Brynden Tully remained calm.
"What of her intentions to marry?"
Tyrion watched the knight's expression. It seemed rather odd he be the one to ask given the rumours. Aegon remained broody but Tyrion directed his response to the young man nonetheless.
"Daenerys may or may not consider your suit but she mourns another. You will not win her heart."
Aegon frowned at that.
"You speak of the sellsword."
Tyrion did not know how he came to hear of it. Naharis boasted of bedding the queen. Still, the rumours travelling as far as Westeros made matters between the two Targaryens rather more interesting.
"Her choice of paramour was rather less bold than yours Your Grace. When I suggested you might have any maid I did not think you might choose that one."
He cursed his tongue the moment the words were uttered. Aegon flushed and Brynden Tully rose and looked as though he wished to spill blood. . Tyrion thanked the gods that Tully did not have a sword on his person. Aegon looked no less angered.
"You will not speak disrespectfully of Arya Stark."
Brynden Tully remained silent but he stalked out of the tent with a face as black as the doublet Aegon wore. Tyrion turned his attention back to Aegon.
"It must make things awkward working so closely with him."
Aegon's jaw worked and his fist clenched.
"Brynden Tully is one of my most trusted advisors. The next time you utter a word about his niece you will be expected to defend those words with steel."
Tyrion did not need to test him any more so he made his apologies. The truth of it is plain enough for a blind man. He could not help one more remark.
"If you wish to protect the lady's honour you might be rather busy overseeing trials. The Greyjoy men were eager to tell of the rumours."
That distracted Aegon. His anger gave way to clear confusion.
"My Aunt is speaking with the Greyjoys?"
Tyrion smiled. "She does more than speak with them. They are her allies."
Aegon fell silent for a brief while before seeming to remember Tyrion was still there.
"You may leave now."
Tyrion left him to ponder whatever thoughts he had provoked. Aegon clearly did not wish to share them with him. He thought they might leave for the Rock but instead they remained in camp. Tyrion found he did not mind. The pavilion the men gathered in seemed quite cheery and the sellswords told him the things he wanted to learn even as Ser Barristan stood over Tyrion disapprovingly still.
The Golden Company bothers him less than it might have now he knows of Ashara Dayne.
It took little to find out about Connington's death. The traitor filling him with arrows did not surprise Tyrion. The greyscale did. The men still speculated about how Connington contracted the disease but Tyrion knew. Saving me from drowning sealed his fate. He wondered that Aegon had not killed him on sight.
The Lyseni who met him outside the camp never strayed far. Tyrion learned his name was Lysono Maar. The man was far more tight-lipped than many of the others. He liked asking questions and listening better than answering them. They sat together with Tyrion making up the bulk of the conversation while those around them laughed at his japes. Their attention shifted away from him when a woman entered. Tyrion did not think much of it until she gave a whistle and one of the men flung an axe at her person.
Tyrion gasped involuntarily, a curse forming on his lips until the woman snatched the axe from the air. Laughter erupted around him. Tyrion watched as one of the sellswords gave a shout and the axe flew back across the tent. It felt as though everybody exhaled when it was caught again.
"Ironborn," a man nearby muttered. "They are all bloody mad."
Tyrion looked at Lysono Maar questioningly. The Lyseni smiled at him genuinely for the first time, no doubt amused by Tyrion's momentary loss of composure.
"That would be Asha Greyjoy," he informed him. "His Grace's Mistress of Ships."
"Is she mad?" Tyrion asked, thinking of Victarion.
Lysono shook his head. "If she thought it might benefit her she might let you think so. The woman does not lack cunning and her wit is a match for yours."
Tyrion watched her with renewed interest. Aegon has a woman as Master of Ships. The lords were unlikely to approve, especially given it was a Greyjoy woman yet the men in the tent seemed to accept her well enough. She saw him looking and grinned, pausing in flipping the dirk she now held in her hand.
She is no Victarion.
"It seems there is no escaping Greyjoys," he quipped.
A female voice behind him made him jump. "A shame the same might not be said of Lannisters. You should not have lived after father died though I suppose I do owe you some thanks for saving us the trouble of killing Lord Tywin."
Nymeria Sand looked rather too calm uttering those words. She found a stool and sat gracefully.
"Pleased to oblige you," Tyrion said dryly. "Aegon tells me we might have expected an even colder welcome from your sisters."
Nymeria tossed her braid over her shoulder.
"He extracted a promise from me. I did not give it willingly but he implored me for the love I bear him. My sisters do not know him as well as I. They would not weaken if he asked. I would curse him for inflicting such fondness upon me if he were not kin."
Tyrion knew what she spoke of. He recalled caring far more than he ever meant to of the fate of the prince long ago when he heard of his movements while in Volantis. He endears people to him. Tyrion did not intend to be one of those people now. He needed to play the game and affection held no place in that.
Nymeria began to look rather more serious even as the merriment continued around them.
"Pray tell me, will Daenerys greet him as kin? You owe me the truth on account of my father."
Tyrion looked around him and saw that only Aegon's men were close. At some point Dany's envoys had been distracted and divided and were engaged in separate conversations. He saw Ser Barristan speaking with Ashara and the others talking to sellswords. Tyrion wanted to tell Nymeria that he owed her nothing. Oberyn cared nothing for me. He only wanted Gregor Clegane dead. Instead he answered her.
"Daenerys craves family but she doubts Aegon. The things she has heard give her pause and she seems to expect betrayal. In truth I do not know how she might greet him."
Nymeria's voice lowered to a hiss. "I have not forgotten what happened to Quentyn. I can assure you than none of the Dornish have forgotten. If I see any sign, even a breath of treachery I will consider my promise to Aegon to be void no matter what pretty story Daenerys spins, dragons or no."
Tyrion heard her father in every word. Aegon told her of Daenerys explanation of Quentyn's death and it made no difference. He smiled at her.
"I would expect nothing less."
She eyed him as though she doubted him before nodding.
They remained in the camp overnight once darkness fell. When morning came Tyrion rose feeling rather eager to see what the day might bring. He stepped outside and found Aegon dressed in finery and ready to leave. He looked at the sky and Tyrion followed his gaze, unsurprised to see Drogon fly overhead.
"He hunts in the mornings Your Grace," Tyrion explained. "You best hope he does not seek prey in the camp."
Aegon clung to the reins of his horse more tightly and shot him a glare.
"I do not believe he will eat me my lord."
Then you are still a foolish boy playing a game you do not understand.
"He will do what Daenerys wills him to do," he replied instead. "I expect she will call him back before he strays too far."
As if on cue the dragon horn sounded. Even with the distance between them he still saw many of the visitors shudder. The noise still jarred his nerves even after hearing it many a time. They mounted up and began the ride back to the castle. Tyrion saw that Aegon brought Nymeria Sand and Asha Greyjoy with him as well as representatives from the Golden Company. Brynden Tully remained behind.
There will be a lot of explaining to do.
He mused over the Hand and the King both attending the West.
"Who governs Kings Landing in your absence Your Grace?" he called out to Aegon.
The reply was abrupt. "Randyll Tarly."
Tyrion did not think it a good choice but he held his tongue. Tarly might be able but he would not be loved. He excelled in military decisions but in harsh winter when the people were struggling a more gentle hand might be needed. Tyrion remembered the riots within the city and the undercurrent of anger in the streets.
Aegon best have the eunuch pulling some strings behind the scenes. With Tarly in command his welcome back to Kings Landing might not be what he hopes.
They dismounted once within the grounds of Casterly Rock and Tyrion led the way. Aegon walked more slowly than might be expected, something Tyrion was duly grateful for. I am tired of lagging behind in the castle which should be mine. He glanced at the young man and noted the furrowed brow.
He does not feel confident in this meeting.
Unsullied came to escort them to Daenerys and Tyrion was forced to quicken his pace. They entered the hall and found Dany seated in the high seat his father once sat. She wore the white lion pelt her khal husband gifted her and the leathers she often wore when riding Drogon.
She wishes to appear a conqueror rather than a queen.
Tyrion looked at Aegon. The furrowed brow was gone and the corners of his mouth quirked a little as though he wished to smile. It did not last long. Dany did not rise to greet him and Missandei announced the names of the guests. Somebody must have reported ahead. When she finished she introduced Daenerys.
"You stand before Daenerys Targaryen, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, the Stormborn, the Unburnt, Mother of Dragons and..."
Dany raised one hand and halted the introduction.
"Thankyou Missandei, I believe they know who I am."
She remained seated with her gaze fixed on Aegon. The hall fell into silence as the two looked upon one another for the first time. Tyrion watched them as eagerly as any other witness in the room, waiting to see what might come of the two claimants in their first meeting.
Now it truly begins.
A/N 2: Next up is a Brienne chapter. Winterfell has been neglected in the story for far too long