A/N: I own nothing except my OCs. A Song of Ice and Fire is owned by George R.R Martin.
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-The Eyrie-
As Alyssa stepped out the cart, she gazed the castle she had called home for most her life. Seeing the Eyrie again after so long felt nostalgic, in a way. Lyonel`s mouth was agape, as he was flabbergasted by the sheer size of the castle of the Arryns.
"So, t-this is where you live?" he asked.
"Indeed it is" Alyssa replied, a wide smile on her face. Her attention was forced to ground upon hearing footsteps in front of her.
"Welcome home, Lady Alyssa" Colemon greeted.
"Maester Colemon" Alyssa said happily. She gave the young maester a hug, which he returned. They separated soon after.
"Welcome to the Eyrie, Lord Lyonel" he said, turning to the heir of the Corbrays.
"Thank you maester" Lyonel said with a bow.
"Now then, please enter" Colemon said, stepping aside as the doors to the Eyrie opened. Lyonel glanced at Alyssa, who gave him a nod, and the pair entered the home of the Arryns. Upon entering, they were greeted with Jon smiling at them, Artys standing beside him and Eddard standing straight.
"Welcome home, Alyssa" Jon said, approaching his daughter.
"Father" Alyssa said, embracing him tenderly. Lyonel found himself smiling at the scene, remenicing how Lucas ran to embrace him after her returned from a long journey through the Vale to meet with other Lords.
"Look at how much you`ve grown, your beauty rivals that of your mother" Jon spoke.
"Father, please" Alyssa said bashfully, a light blush dusting her cheeks.
"Happy nameday, Sister" Arys spoke up, breaking up the moment.
"Arty" Alyssa said, hugging him as well.
"Arty?" Lyonel and Eddard asked at the same time.
"It`s a simple nickname Alyssa gave Artys when they were younger" Jon stated.
"Arty huh, nice name" Robert chuckled.
"Great" Artys mumbled, blushing. Letting him go, Alyssa motioned towards Lyonel, who was still standing by the entrance.
"Artys, this is Lyonel Corbray, my betrothed" she said.
"I-It`s a pleasure to meet you" Lyonel said, shaking Artys` hand.
"Now then, let`s head to the dining hall" Jon said. Alyssa nodded and followed her father through halls of her home.
The atmosphere around the dinner table was quite joyous. Alyssa hadn`t felt this happy in years. Being back home, with her father and younger brother, celebrating her eight and tenth nameday. Elbert had also come along to celebrate. The young Arryn stepped forward to the table his uncle and cousins were sitting at.
"It`s been a long time, cousin" Elbert said as he bowed.
"Too long if you ask me" Alyssa replied with a smile.
"Happy nameday" Elbert said, handing her a small box. Opening the box, she found a pair of earrings, the same sky blue color as her dress.
"They`re beautiful" Jon spoke.
"Thank you very much" Alyssa smiled.
"Tis my honor" Elbert spoke, leaving after another bow. Momentarily meeting the gaze of Lyonel, the two young lords simply nodded at each other. Elbert then sat down beside his mother, Lady Belmore.
"Is that the last one?" Alyssa asked.
"It should be" Jon replied. Alyssa sighed, leaning back in her chair.
"Not used to receiving so many gifts?" Artys asked.
"No, I just haven`t greeted so many people before" Alyssa replied, causing Artys to roll his eyes.
"Well, as the next Lady of House Corbray, you will need to get used to it" Jon spoke.
"Of course" Alyssa sighed. Her brief forlorn face did not escape the notice of Artys however. "Does Robert ever stop eating?" she asked.
"I`ve asked the same thing" Artys replied, causing the others to chuckle. While Alyssa wasn`t looking, Jon winked at Artys, who smiled knowingly.
The celebrations were beginning to die down. Aside from Lyonel, Elbert and Lady Belamore were the only guests left. Following Artys through the halls, Alyssa felt rather nervous. She couldn`t put her finger on why, but the whole situation had her on edge.
"Here we are" Artys spoke, bringing Alyssa out of her thoughts. Once she looked up, she recognized the door quickly.
"Isn`t this…?" she trailed off.
"Aye, it`s Father`s chambers" Artys replied with a smile. He then knocked on the door.
"Enter" Jon said. Artys then opened the door, Alyssa close behind him.
"She`s here, Father" he said.
"Good, then leave us" Jon responded. Artys nodded and closed the door on his way out. "Have a seat" Jon said, with his daughter complying.
"So, why did you call me here?" she asked.
"Well, I have some good news" he replied. "Consider this your nameday present" he added.
"Well, what is it?" Alyssa asked, feeling anxious yet excited.
"Your betrothal to Lyonel Corbray has been annulled" he replied. Suddenly, Alyssa grew very quiet, frozen in place at the statement.
Sitting back down, she murmured, "A-Are you serious?"
"Aye, it was done this morning" Jon replied.
"Why?" was all Alyssa could say.
"I realized that it was a poor match" Jon replied. "It did nothing to help House Arryn and put you in a peril position." He sat there and waited for Alyssa to process what he had just told her. After a few minutes, she let out a deep sigh.
"Very well" she said, looking up her father. "If that is all, I would like to return to my chambers" she spoke.
"That is all" Jon replied. Alyssa nodded, rose from her seat and walked towards the door.
Before opening it, she asked, "What of my belongings?"
"They are being brought here at this very moment" Jon replied. Alyssa nodded again before leaving.
A/N: And that ends this chapter… again. The main reason I did this is because I realized how dumb this was. Really, Jon would`ve known that he would get nothing out of the match. House Corbray isn`t powerful enough to do much to stand up to the Arryns by themselves, let alone their most powerful vassals. Even when reviewers pointed this out, I failed to see this. All I can say is, my bad. Besides, I`d rather just redo this chapter than rewriting the entire story. Thought speaking of which, the first chapter and description have been updated to include a small change I made.
Anyway, hope you all enjoyed it. Thanks for all your favorites, follows and reviews. Have a fantastic evening and I`ll se you all next time.