The Kingsroad 299 AC.
Maege Mormont.
Less than a moon ago, she'd feared her days were done and she'd not see her daughters again. She'd found herself grateful that Dacey was in the North and happy to know that while she may not be there to see Lyanna grow, her little She-Bear would be surrounded by family still. When she'd been woken up after the betrayal in the Twins, Maege had resolved herself to her fate, only to find it was not the one she'd expected.
A dragon had come to save her and to give her the chance to see Bear Island and her girls again. Not only that but she'd been given the chance for vengeance and justice against those who'd betrayed the North and had sought her end. To say she'd reveled in dishing both those things out to the fearful Freys would be a massive understatement. Maege had somewhat sated her bloodlust and had laughed loudly when Black Walder had wet his pants and cried like a babe. As she had when Walder Frey had met his end at the hands of a man she'd named as king. A man she named wrongly. For as much as she had admired and believed in Robb Stark, it was his cousin, a boy who saw the Starks as brothers and sisters by choice who was the reason she breathed still.
Jon Snow had gained their favor somewhat by rescuing his sisters. She and others had toasted him loudly when they'd heard how he'd rode against the Mountain and left the bodies of men who'd ravaged the Riverlands in his wake. Though it was knowing that he'd done so to see Arya Stark safe that had truly been why she herself had toasted him. Then when news came that he'd done the same for his other sister, the ale had flowed and the cheers had rung out loudly. Maege were she to close her eyes would still remember the words that had been spoken loudly by one and all that night.
"To the White Wolf."
"Right into the Lion's Den."
"A true Stark that one, may his father look down upon him proudly."
Little had any of them known at the time that the man they thought Jon Snow's father was anything but and to her shame, she like others had then thought lesser of him because of who his true father had been. Not even Howland's words had been enough to make her do the right thing. Nor were Lady Catelyn's when she named them true. It had taken what he'd done at the Twins to get her knees to bend to the true king, though they'd bent figuratively and not literally.
After they'd dealt with the traitorous Freys, she'd watched a wolf who was a dragon very closely and had seen what she'd missed before. It was not Ned Stark that Jon Snow took his coloring from, though it was a Stark that he did. A Stark she'd named a friend once and who she wished was here to see her son as he led them to face the Lannisters. The time now nearing to bring justice and vengeance to the man who'd been the architect behind what had happened at the Twins.
Maege had watched him closely. Seeing him with the wild little wolf that was his sister and who he'd named his squire had brought a smile to her face each time she did so. To see him care not that it was a girl he'd named as his squire and to hear him as he named her as the She-Wolf, The Lady Warrior, and The Sword of the North had made Maege even more sure that he was his mother's son. So when he'd left and they'd marched without him, she had felt the loss and when the woman he'd named his wife and queen had arrived in his stead, it was her that she'd found her eyes drawn to. In Daenerys Targaryen, she had seen a different strength, a woman's strength, and while not a warrior, the woman was fierce too in her own way. Nevermore so than when she'd defended Jorah and his actions since leaving Bear Island, to her. It had been why she'd gone to speak to her nephew, why she'd held her mace and listened to him. That and the king's words that he'd spoken on Jorah and on Jeor's forgiveness of him.
"I had thought when next I saw you I'd strike you down with my mace," she said as they stood alone under the night's sky.
"I had expected it, aunt," Jorah said sadly.
"Why?" she asked and he sighed before answering.
"I feared I was losing my wife, that she wished to leave me and so I tried to buy her love."
"You sold men for such?" she asked incredulously.
"Aye. Fool that I was."
"She left you anyway did she not?"
"She did. Then I was even more lost than when I sold men into slavery. Were it not for her grace, I'd be lost still." Jorah's words were spoken both sadly and then fondly when he spoke of the queen.
"You helped free a city? Slaves?" she asked curiously.
"My role was a small one, aunt. It was my queen who did so. Me and Ser Barristan we acted our parts and were there by her side, but it was her and her alone who deserves the credit for Astapor."
"Yet she seeks to give you your own too."
"More than I deserve," he said modestly.
"I know not if I can ever forgive you for the shame you brought our house. Though given the sword you bear and the words spoken by the king, it seems your father has."
"I'd not sought it, though I'd be a liar if I said I didn't hope for it."
"What now, Jorah?" she asked, not wishing to speak on Bear Island but needing to.
"I serve my queen and king as a member of their Kingsguard. I wear the white cloak as Ser Arthur and Ser Barristan do and hope to one day be given leave by the Lady of Bear Island to at least see my home once more. Though it would be to visit only. I have no right to name myself its Lord anymore, Aunt, no wish to do so and am happy to see it in better hands than mine own."
"One day, mayhap," she said as she left him alone and walked back to her tent.
Soon enough it was thoughts of battle that focussed her mind and their victory that day was as glorious as any the North had ever known. She'd fought side by side with men of the North, with true and Leal men, and had seen Tywin Lannister not just defeated, but routed. Maege had looked on as the men and to her delight, women, of Skagos had fought as fiercely as the dragons that flew over their heads. She'd thanked the Old Gods that a son of Lyanna Stark's had brought his Black Dragon to bear against their enemies. While she had been awed by the sight of the queen upon her own dragon laying down the flames that had broken the army they had faced.
When the fight was won, she had wished to celebrate their victory and there would be ale in her future, but something else had taken her attention. Roose Bolton and his men had slipped away from the wedding at the Twins. Something that at the time she'd given little thought to, but seeing him ride in from the flanks and attack the Lannister and Tyrell armies had felt off to her. Though seeing the king's own dragon lay down flames that broke the Bolton charge, then seeing the men and women of Skagos attack them, very much did not.
After going to them and finding out that the Kingslayer had been freed and that Roose was claiming it as some mummery, she felt her hackles raise. So it was to Robb Stark and to the Lords of the North that she went next. As Tywin Lannister was being dropped unceremoniously on his arse and taken by the Dornish to face his judgment, it was to Roose Bolton that she, Robb Stark, Grey Wind, and the Greatjon made their way. By the time they reached the tent he was being held in, they'd been joined by Galbart Glover and Ser Wylis Manderly. Both men were keen to find out the truth of things themselves once they'd heard of Roose's return.
"My king, what is the meaning of this?" Roose said when they entered the tent to find him tied to one of its poles.
"I am no longer a king, Lord Bolton. The North and I have knelt to King Rhaegar Targaryen, be thankful that it's not a dragon that stands before you. Though mayhap you should fear a wolf just as much." Robb Stark said as Grey Wind moved towards the Leech Lord.
"I understand this not." Roose Bolton said and yet Maege saw the small twitch of his mouth as he spoke.
"You betrayed the North, Bolton, you think we'd not find out what you'd done?" The Greatjon said, his voice booming around the tent.
"Betrayed how? I'm as Leal as I ever was." Roose said to a sneer from Ser Wylis.
"Which is not Leal at all. First, your bastard does disgraceful and ungodly things to Lady Hornwood, then seeks to take Winterfell for himself and then you free the Kingslayer." Ser Wylis said accusingly.
"I've spoken enough of my distaste and my disgust for my bastard's actions. I played no part in them nor know naught about them." Roose said and she had to admit, he spoke the words as if they were true.
"I find that hard to believe, Lord Bolton, given how firm a hand you kept on your lands and your men." Robb Stark said before adding "Yet you freed the Kingslayer yourself did you not?"
"Aye, my ki…my lord. To gain favor with Tywin Lannister and to open up his flanks for my attack."
"Without telling me your plans? Without speaking to the man you named your king?" Robb Stark's anger was something that she and the others in the tent much appreciated "You told no one of this, of this or any other plan, for you sought not to come to our aid but to join in what you'd thought was to be a Lannister victory this day. Did you not, my lord?"
"I did not!" Roose said firmly and there was truth in his words, enough of it to make the lie seem true to Maege's eyes.
Seeing Robb Stark falter somewhat and looking behind him to see that both Galbart and Wylis too were having doubts, though the Greatjon was not, she move forward and whispered in Robb Stark's ear before speaking to Roose.
"What were you promised, Roose? Gold? To be named Warden? Or was it not even Tywin Lannister's favor you sought? Did you think that given the issues between the North and the Dragons that it was to you that Rhaegar Targaryen would look and not to his brother?"
She saw it, Robb saw it, and the others in the tent saw it too. Her words had struck a nerve, Roose's eyes which normally gave so little away, now gave it all and with a look to Robb Stark, she then moved back behind him.
"It matters not, talk you will and the truth will come from your own lips before we leave this tent. You may think you mastered fear and torture, Lord Bolton, but while a flayed man may holds no secrets, a man faced with a wolf will sing them loudly." Robb Stark said and Grey Wind moved about his master's bidding.
The screams rang out loudly, the blood splattered and splashed and she was not the only one of them glad not to have cleaned themselves up. Soon enough the truth and extent of Roose's betrayal were known to one and all of them and from the tent it was to a block that Roose Bolton was taken.
"In the Name of his grace, King Rhaegar Targaryen, I Lord Robb Stark of Riverrun do hereby sentence you to death. Do you have any last words?"
Roose said nothing and she, the Lords of the North, and their men watched as Robb Stark swung the sword. Later she found out that it was not only Roose who'd met his end that night, but Tywin Lannister also had too and they'd then drank and celebrated their deaths and the victory they'd won. She'd spoken to Robb Stark and found he was happy enough with being named Lord of Riverrun and she, the Greatjon and Ser Wylis had all agreed it was for the best. While she didn't blame him for the Twins, some always would and so mayhap the Riverlands would suit him better than the North. They still had a Stark in Winterfell and soon enough they'd have one probably as Lord of the Dreadfort too. Though she knew there were others who'd seek that prize.
As they marched the next day, she did so with a smile on her face. It had been six and ten, almost seven and ten years since she'd marched to King's Landing to crown a king. While she'd not held any great love for Robert Baratheon, she'd believed him to be the right man to lead them at the time. The years that passed had shown that he was very much not. The North had gained naught from supporting him in the Rebellion. Though it had not been why they'd fought. Maege though wondered now if they would gain more given who the king they marched to crown was. She believed that they would and regardless of that, she did hold some love for Rhaegar Targaryen, and she knew he was the right man to crown. For he was her son and that was more than enough for her.
King's Landing 299 AC.
Olenna.
The waiting was something she hated. Being in the dark and waiting for word of battles fought far from where you were, though far better than actually being there in one she supposed, was worrisome and constant. She'd look to the sky whenever she heard the flapping of wings only to find it was gulls or other birds and not ravens that flew. Not that she'd rely on Pycelle to tell her the truth of things. No, she'd learned the lessons of leaving it to others to be her source of information and so had sent outriders to bring her news from the battlefield, news that could be accepted and not manipulated by others.
She had no true fear they'd lose. It was Tywin Lannister who led their men and not Mace. The Old Lion, for all she hated him, was formidable when it came to battle. Olenna somehow ignored the small voice in her head that said he'd lost every single one against the Young Wolf. Just as she ignored the much larger one that spoke of dragons and of a Dragonking. Her own spies had confirmed that Daenerys Targaryen's dragons were far from the Battlefield in the West and Rhaegar Targaryen had no dragon to call upon of his own, or so she hoped.
Once again she ignored the voice in her head told her that if his wife had three dragons, then surely he could have claimed one of them for his mount. Instead, she thought back to the reports on his movements that she'd been given. He was not in the West, much to her surprise, yet he was not with his cousin either, thanks be to the Seven. Whatever divide existed between the two boys who'd been raised as Ned Stark's sons was one that she was most happy about. Olenna was sure it must be something to do with both Rhaegar Targaryen's formerly presumed status as a bastard and Catelyn Tully's own feelings for the boy.
Yet again she found herself forced to fight down an unwelcome voice in her head. Two actually. The first told her that given his rescue of the two Stark girls there would be common ground between him and the woman who had hated his very existence. While the second named Dorne and the army led by Oberyn Martell to be where Rhaegar Targaryen had disappeared to. Logically she knew this was a falsehood. A thing that would not or could not be. Dorne was ever prickly and the Martells would never break bread with the son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen. Not even for the justice they sought. No sooner had she thought it than those self-same voices began to speak once more, this time they were thankfully drowned out by her granddaughter's own voice.
"Are you well, Grandmamma?" Margaery asked worriedly.
"I am, Sweetling, just tired." she lied.
"Mayhap you need to take a nap, should I…"
"I'll retire to my rooms if I feel the need I'll lay down for a bit. You'll be spending time with the king today?" she asked.
"We're to visit one of the orphanages," Margaery said with a smile and while helping the poor wretches of King's Landing was not something that Olenna would pay any mind to, she knew it had made her granddaughter beloved and so she had held her tongue on it, as she did now.
"Be careful, Sweetling," she said rising to her feet and placing a kiss on Margaery's cheek, and then together with Left and Right, she made her way through the keep.
She passed the many guards that were now stationed everywhere. Her men outnumbered the Lannister men and yet all fell under the Kingslayer's command, or they were to a point. Truly they followed her command and would take their orders from her should she need to countermand any that Jaime Lannister gave them. Olenna though was happy to place them under his command and to have him in charge of the city's defenses. Jaime Lannister may be a man with no honor and a sister fucker, but he was just like his father, a capable military man.
As she saw one of Varys' little birds, she sighed annoyed. Where the eunuch had gotten to was anyone's guess and why he'd seen fit to release Tyrion Lannister and bring him with him, was beyond even her, and yet she'd have welcomed his presence here. No one could gather information quicker than Varys and while his true motivations were as much a mystery as his origins, in some aspects he could be trusted. Were he here, then Olenna would have no doubt that if the battle had already taken place, then he'd know the outcome. Good news or bad, he'd share it too, she felt.
Alas, he and the Imp were off playing their own little game as was Stannis Baratheon and she had no doubt that she'd need to remove all three from the board at some point. Firstly though she needed to know that she and her family were not in danger of being removed before then. So when she arrived at her rooms, she sent for more of her men to send out as riders. Five of them left before night had fallen and later that night when she finally went to her bed, she had calmed somewhat.
"Grandmother! Grandmother!" Margaery called out in the morning and Olenna looked up worriedly at her, wondering what had caused her to come into her room and wake her so.
"What is it, child? What has happened?"
"Riders grandmother, they said they bear a message for you that's most urgent. They were most insistent." Margaery said and Olenna nodded before she then reached out and brushed her hand over Margaery's cheek to calm her as much as such a thing could.
She didn't dress, not completely. Olenna just threw on a warm cloak that covered her and kept her from getting a chill and Margaery helped her to the desk in her solar. It was rare that she didn't dress fully and the last time she'd met anyone without her hat and wimple on was so many years ago now that she barely remembered it. Other than her family and Left and Right, no one had seen her hair worn loose in many a year. Yet given the urgency in Margaery's tone and the worry in her expression, she had felt it better for this to be done quickly than properly.
The rider was covered in dust and had clearly ridden hard. Were this another time and another place, then she'd have let loose some barbs at him for daring to approach her in such a state. Given the message he had and where she believed it from, she very much did not. He moved nervously to her and handed her the small note. Olenna bid him stay with her eyes as she opened it and then as she read it she gasped aloud.
"Grandmother?" Margaery cried out as Olenna let the note fall to the floor, her shock at the words it contained causing her to lose her composure.
"My Lady?" Left asked as he moved to the man who'd brought the note and Margaery bent down to pick up the note itself.
"This cannot be." her granddaughter said almost on the verge of tears "Father, Garlan."
Hearing Margaery cry out, quickly forced her from her own despair and she rose and grabbed her granddaughter in a tight embrace. She held her tightly to her as Margaery sobbed and Olenna spoke as softly as she could, telling her that the note said nothing about them being harmed, just defeated. It was not the only words the note carried. For an army now marched their way that they were ill-equipped to handle and was that not bad enough, the dragons flew towards them too.
By the end of the day, the Lannisters knew too and Olenna's one and only path had opened up in front of her. They were doomed, and their chances of growing strong had been ended in one single defeat. There was no way they'd come out of this with a crown on Margaery's head and they would be lucky enough to do so with any of them having heads where a crown could be placed upon. Highgarden, the Reach, all of it was gone now, and while she could run, in the end, she couldn't outrun a dragon. No one could.
There was but one more move in the great game open to them and she prayed to the Seven that Rhaegar Targaryen had taken some of Eddard Stark's honor for himself. She prayed it was Rickard Stark that he saw as his grandfather and not Aerys, and then she called for her guards and set them about their business. She smiled when Left and Right arrived with Margaery and Tommen. The young Lannister boy was so enraptured by her granddaughter that it had only taken a single word from Margaery's lips to make him follow. After then ordering Left and Right to make sure they were secure, she sat down by the fire across from her granddaughter and the boy king and waited for the dragons to arrive.
Pentos 299 AC.
Tyrion.
He had listened to the tale that Jon Connington had spun. Essos, the Golden Company, and finally to Pentos where he'd met the same Magister as he had and had then been told an unbelievable tale. One that unlike him, the Griffin believed in completely. Tyrion though found far too many holes in the tale of Aegon's rescue. None of which were bigger than with the man who'd supposedly rescued him. Varys may be enigmatic and claim to serve the realm, but if he'd been able to do as he said, then his reasons for not rescuing Princess Elia and Princess Rhaenys just didn't add up.
True enough, it was easier to sneak a babe from King's Landing than a grown woman and a three Nameday old child. Especially given who all three of them were. Yet a babe created its own difficulties too and it was far more likely that Princess Rhaenys would survive to grow than Prince Aegon would. Especially with the journey, that the prince had supposedly undertaken.
It brought to Tyrion's mind the journey of another babe, a babe that too had undertaken a journey without his mother. Jon Snow though had traveled openly and with a wet nurse. He'd traveled a fair distance to be sure, but at no point was he being hidden, and never truly was he under fear of being discovered, 'mores' the pity' his father would say. No, the tale he was told about Aegon Targaryen was one that just didn't hold up. So he'd played along, accepted the words, and asked only the most minor of questions so that it looked as if his curiosity and doubts had been assuaged.
It then had led to him trying to figure out Varys' plan for the boy and how they'd see him crowned. They had little proof of who he said he was and there was little else to offer up other than his name. It then took him some days to be brought into the loop. Days spent with him being the one who spoke most often and answered more questions than any. All those questions were on the same subject, Jon Snow. Tyrion was now sure that it wasn't his wit and cleverness nor his name that Varys had saved him for, but his knowledge of a formerly bastard boy.
"You've met my brother, Lord Tyrion?" Aegon asked as they sat around on the deck of the Shy Maid.
"I have, your grace," he answered, knowing that the Griffin liked him not and bristled each time he'd called the boy Aegon.
"What's he like?" Aegon asked eagerly.
"He was a sullen and miserable lad when I first met him. Bore the weight of who he believed he was on his shoulders and who he believed was his father even more." he began "Though at times he showed a different side to him too and by the time we reached the Wall, he and I while not friends, were companions at least."
"His uncle really sent him to the Wall?" Aegon asked and while he was annoyed, it was clear the Griffin was even more so.
"I believe that your brother…"
"Half brother." Jon Connington said only for Aegon to shake his head and glare at the older man.
"He's my brother, Jon, I have little enough family as it is to not see him so."
"Of course, your grace."
"I believe that your brother thought it was the only way to remove the stain from Ned Stark's cloak, your grace. That and he believed the lies that said there was great honor to be found at the Watch."
"There's not?" Aegon asked and Tyrion shook his head, he'd found good men there, men of honor, but the Wall was no place for any of them to his mind.
"No. Certainly not for a prince of the blood," he said to a smile from Aegon.
The boy had named Jon Snow as that, a prince of the blood, a brother true, and one he hoped would stand by his side. When Tyrion had spoken of what Jon Snow had done for his sisters, it had not just been Aegon who'd smiled. Varys and Jon Connington too had been more than happy at those words. Now the more he spoke on Jon Snow, the more questions he answered about him, the surer he was on their plans to crown Aegon as king.
"He and my aunt were wed were they not?" Aegon asked some time later.
"From what the ravens we received said, yes they were. Varys though would know better than I."
"They were my king," Varys said when Aegon looked at him and Aegon frowned for a moment.
"I had thought to wed her myself, to join our claims and restore our bloodline, but if she and my brother are happy then I am most pleased for them." the young man said and sounded it, if not completely.
"Do you seek a bride yourself, your grace?" he asked only for Jon Connington to rise to his feet and bid them all to their beds.
The Shy Maid sailed down the Little Rhoyne and soon the ruined city of the Ghoyan Drohe came into view. It was the closest point to Pentos that a riverboat could make and had been where he and Varys had joined up with the others. Tyrion had believed that it would be some time until he saw the ruined city again, but all in all, it had been but a few weeks and not even a moon at most. Whatever words they had needed him to say or whatever information about Jon Snow they'd wished to know, they knew it now, and so the time had come for the next stage in Varys and Illyrio's plans.
It was to be to Pentos that all but the captain of the Shy Maid and his wife were to travel to. Tyrion was more than looking forward to the finer fare and wines as well as the less cramped conditions of the ship. As he was, to finally prove his idea about their plans true. The fight he'd expected or that they had expected, was not one they were equipped to win. What allies they'd planned to gain in that fight were unknown to him, though he knew that Jon Snow's existence had not been something they'd planned for. In the end, it was something that he believed they now welcomed.
They intended to let him do all the heavy lifting. For him and his aunt to win the war and defeat Tyrion's father and the Roses who held the throne. Then they would use his love of family to get him to step aside, his brother's claim superseding his own. His words that Catelyn Stark had always feared that Jon Snow would usurp her own children had rung truest of all to Varys, Jon Connington, and Illyrio's ears. Those and the ones he'd spoken about how it was a foolish fear the woman had and one that the boy in question would never do.
A grand council, the sudden appearance of a long thought dead prince, and a eunuch spreading a tale of a rescue seven and ten years earlier. Dorne would support their kin, and most of the realm would accept Aegon as a trueborn son even more than they did Jon Snow as one. His mother and father may have wed each other, but just as he'd been all his life, there would be those who named him a bastard still. The boy's own nature and feelings about family would see him almost wish to step down as well and since Aegon was willing to name him a brother true and a prince of the blood, he'd still have risen far higher than he'd ever have believed possible.
It was a good plan, a clever one and yet Tyrion wasn't as certain as the architects of that plan that it would work how they thought it would. He'd seen enough holes to be poked in Aegon's story to doubt his claims. There were no papers. No evidence other than the word of a man who few believed and fewer trusted and of another who'd been given up for dead and hadn't been there when the so-called rescue had taken place. Then there was the biggest issue of all. Tyrion had spoken truly when he'd told them of Jon Snow. None of the words had been lies or half-truths and yet Tyrion couldn't shake one thought from his head. Not even as they rode to Pentos could he stop his mind from thinking the same thing over and over.
'Jon Snow is dead and Rhaegar Targaryen is not a bastard boy."
King's Landing 299 AC.
Jaime Lannister.
Before the Battle of the Kingsroad.
He'd spent days working on defenses and trying to come to terms with what he was doing and could soon be facing. His mind went back to remembering a city be readied to face a victorious army and to what had happened to the people of that city. Memories of the past and the losses that had haunted him for seven and ten years had never been far from his mind. Now they were on it constantly. As were thoughts of just who would be leading one of the armies that may come to besiege this city.
While he believed in his father and felt they had the numbers to beat the Northmen and even the Dornish, it was not them that Jaime felt would be the biggest threat. Hearing that Lannisport had fallen and Casterly Rock was being threatened by the dragons, Jaime was sure that no matter what happened in the battles his father and their men were to face, eventually, the true battle would be upon them. A battle fought not against the Red Viper or the Young Wolf, but against his queen's daughter and his prince's son, a battle fought against Arthur Dayne.
Roose Bolton hadn't known the truth of whether or not Arthur Dayne lived or not. He'd barely known the truth about Jon Snow now being Rhaegar Targaryen and naming himself as the First of his Name. Other than some ravens bearing the news and words spoken by Robb Stark and Howland Reed, as well as some of the Stark guards who claimed to have ridden with Jon Snow when he'd rescued his sister, none of the Northmen had any true proof. Yet he had heard it said that when he'd arrived at Riverrun some moons ago, Jon Snow had been accompanied by a man of Dorne.
That had brought a smile and a frown to Jaime's face all at the same time and had raised so many questions. The first of them had then been answered by his father and it was true, Arthur lived. He was doing as he should, as he had sworn to do and Jaime wished so very much to be by his side, and yet knew it could not be. The die had been cast long before now. His path had been chosen for him and not by him. When he did face Arthur again it would be at the end of Dawn and he at least took some comfort in that.
"All is ready." one of the guards shouted out taking him from his thoughts for a moment and he nodded before turning to head back to the Red Keep, his mind soon returning to Arthur and Rhaegar's son and the troubled expression he wore was one that was well deserved.
After the Battle of the Kingsroad.
She was disconsolate, and it was only because of just how broken she was that he had been able to think on anything other than their impending doom. When he woke, it was to find her standing on the balcony. Cersei leaning far too forward and he feared she was preparing to jump. Something she confirmed to him when they spoke later.
"I cannot be taken prisoner, Jaime, I will not be taken prisoner," she said as he practically carried her back into their room.
"I'd not allow that to happen," he said and she laughed bitterly.
"Would that it was in your power to stop it, my love," she said as she looked past him to the balcony they'd left behind.
"We can still…"
"What win? Beat them? Hold them back?" she said while shaking her head "If you believe so then you're the stupidest of Lannisters. Father rode with more than 50,000 men and what good did it do him?"
"We have the city, father faced them on an open field, we have the city," he said almost desperately.
"How well did that work out for Aerys, for Elia and her children?" Cersei asked and he had no answer to give her.
In the end, he'd had Pycelle give her Dreamwine. He had then had a guard placed on the balcony and the room searched. Never had he seen her that way before and it made him more fearful of what she may do than it did about what they'd soon have to face. Not that he wasn't fearful about that as well.
He'd been right and wrong at the same time and he took no comfort in it. Rhaegar Targaryen had been the true threat as he'd suspected and be it the boy himself or Arthur's guidance, he'd played them all for fools. Jaime had laughed at the irony of his father, in the end, falling for the same trick that had cost him his freedom. Jon Snow, though he was no longer him, proved that he and his cousin had both studied under the same men at Winterfell and had in turn both used the same tactics to confuse and capture a lion. Though he doubted his father had been as lucky as he and had been taken, prisoner.
There was little time to mourn him though, that would come later. For not just one army and dragons now marched their way, but three or maybe four in total did. It would be an army far larger than the one that his father had marched to the gates of the city during the rebellion that would soon be besieging them. The North, Riverlands, Dorne, and the Dragon's own men as well as the Queen's dragons would arrive within a day or more and Jaime had no true idea of what to do or how to stop them. He doubted they could be and that worried him more than anything.
Was it just him alone, then he'd seek to face Arthur one on one. His sword against Dawn and though he believed he'd lose, he'd accept death if it came from his former brother. If it was Robb Stark who led this army then he'd fear not for his sister and their son. The Young Wolf had his father's honor and though they'd lose their positions, they'd not lose their lives with him in charge. Oberyn Martell's presence amongst the armies that marched their way worried him though. He'd not simply accept a loss of position and while he may not seek Tommen's death, he'd certainly seek Cersei's which in turn had left him with no choice.
"You're sure about this?" Vylarr asked.
"I am. The city can't hold and those who march our way won't seek our surrender."
"I'll ready the ship. The coin?"
"As much of it as you can gather, but I worry more that the path is clear. So see to that more than anything else."
"As you command, Lord Jaime," Vylarr said and then he was alone once more.
Lord. His father finally got his wish in death or in what they all presumed had been his death. He was now Lord Jaime Lannister, Lord of Casterly Rock, though he doubted he'd ever see it again. It was not the Rock that was to be his destination and instead Essos and his family manse in Braavos would be where he, Cersei, and Tommen would go. Mayhap if things worked out as he hoped, Myrcella too. It would be a different life they'd know, but in a way, it could well turn out to be a better life. Most importantly though it would be a life.
Later that night.
The Gods laugh at those who make plans. Never had truer words been spoken and that he'd not seen it coming, was no comfort at all. As they now scurried through the streets, their guards falling behind them as Tyrell men at arms cut them down with their numbers if not their skill, he held Cersei's hand and hated to see the panic in her eyes. Down one alley after the other they went, men, falling behind them as they did so and the Red Keep fading even more from their view as the docks finally began to be seen.
For the briefest moment, he'd believed that they'd make it. Olenna had obviously looked at the board and worked out the odds as he had. Tet she'd thought not to flee to save her and Margaery's heads. Instead, she'd sought to give his, Cersei, and Tommen's to the dragons to buy her family's lives. As plans go it was not a bad one and as moves go, an excellent one. Tommen had been taken to her room by Margaery. Their son was enamored with his wife and she'd moved to him long before Jaime and Cersei had. Then once he was secured, it was to him and Cersei that Olenna had put her attention to capturing.
Had she not been fearful of her own and her granddaughter's safety, then she may have sent her two giant guards to take them, prisoner. Jaime was not sure he'd have been able to manage one let alone both of them along with the other men who'd have come. That she was fearful of leaving herself and Margaery without their protection, and Jaime's own skill had given him and Cersei the chance to escape. Now as they finally turned to the street that led to the docks, he saw that chance go up in smoke, literally. The ship burned. There were none of his men to call to him and far too many of the Tyrell men moving his way.
"I'm sorry, my love, I failed," he said as Cersei looked at him.
"I love you. I've always loved you, you and only you. My love, my other half." Cersei said as she kissed him deeply.
When he felt it, he knew not. The blood tasted salty in his mouth and he felt her as she slumped against him. Jaime opened his eyes as she fell to the ground. He saw it when the light left her own and then he saw his dagger stuck in her chest and realized what it was she'd done. Anger, grief, despondency, or some combination of all three was all he felt and as men bid him surrender, they found he was in no condition to do so. He cut down men as if they weren't there, felt some cuts land on him, and yet they bothered him not. One, two, four, ten. How many men met their ends at a grief-stricken Jaime Lannister's hands, he'd never know. Hearing it overhead was probably what saved his life and allowed him to be captured and not killed. The Dragon flew and it was a majestic sight. As large as Balerion had ever been he'd wager and it was not alone as three others flew alongside it. Jaime saw them as clear as day before they faded from his view and while he didn't feel the knock on his head, it had the desired effect.
"Take him to Lady Olenna, she'll be most pleased we captured at least one of the twins." were the last words he heard before he slipped into unconsciousness and when he woke from it, it was to find he was a prisoner once again.
Volantis 299 AC.
Davos Seaworth.
While they hadn't long to wait, he found he hated the city they waited in. Slavery was something he'd encountered from time to time when he'd docked in Essos, and something he found repulsive. The thoughts of being owned, of having no free will, and of being at the mercy of your master were not ones he liked to ponder on. Westeros had many faults and those at the top cared little for those beneath them, yet the people were still free to decide their own fate too. If the Lord who owned the lands you lived on turned out to be a terrible one, then you were free to move to other lands. True enough most still suffered under the Lords and remained on the lands they were born on, but they had the choice to leave, something a slave did not.
As for those who ran the city and held the wealth, well Davos had seen men and women like that all his life. None of them here though seemed to care for anything but themselves and again while that was true in Westeros, it was different too. Each day he'd rise and be forced to make the trek from the tavern he stayed in and to the Red Temple, was yet another day where he'd see the truth of this place even more clearly. Still, it was surprising to him that as much as he hated the city and those who ruled over it, it was the Red Temple and its priests and priestesses that he despised the most. Every single visit to speak to his king or to spend time with Shireen was one that left him with the feeling of being watched and judged, and he liked it not.
So when the ships arrived, he welcomed them as it was a sign that their time here was coming to an end. The fleet that had been assembled, with the Iron Bank's backing, was like none he'd ever even imagined let alone witnessed. Not even during the Greyjoy Rebellion had he seen so many ships gathered in one place and outside the bay of Volantis, they now lay at anchor waiting for the men from the Golden Company to arrive. This to his dismay, and his king's annoyance, took far longer than he'd expected. Their march and the sheer mass of men who did so had not allowed for it to be a quick one and that they weren't actually marching to a battle, had meant that they didn't march at full pace. Which was the only thing that Stannis took any comfort in.
As he woke up and readied for yet another day in this godforsaken place, he soon smiled at the thoughts of the day he had ahead of him. Shireen had asked to be allowed to explore the city and to both her and his own delight, Stannis had agreed. She'd then asked for him to be her guide, something that her mother would usually not allow and take issue with, but for some reason had not and that was good by him. To spend time with the young girl was always a joy for him and even in this city he hated, it was one he most looked forward to. So after washing and dressing, after breaking his fast and sighing when he saw that his son was already at the Red Temple. Mathos praying no doubt with some of the other true believers. Davos then made his way to meet up with Shireen and was relieved to find her already waiting for him when he arrived.
"Ser Onion Knight," Shireen called out happily and Davos looked to her and offered her as bright a smile as his old weathered face could call upon, knowing full well it would fare poorly in comparison with the princess' own.
"Princess, have you been waiting out here all morning?" he asked chidingly only for Shireen to shake her head.
"No, Ser Davos. I worked out your usual waking hour, the time you'd take to break your fast, and how quickly you'd walk here. So I've been here not more than a few moments." she said proudly and he had no doubt that she'd done as she'd said.
"Ready for the day ahead?" he asked and she nodded eagerly, Davos looking to her guards and bidding them walk with them as he and Shireen turned to walk back into the city.
Just as he expected, it was a day he enjoyed immensely. They walked over the Long Bridge and made their way to the Black Walls. Not he, nor his king to his knowledge, had been granted an audience with the Old Blood who lived behind those walls. Not even with the backing of the Red Priests had they been deemed important enough for the men and women whose wealth and privilege put the Lannisters to shame. Today they were lucky enough to see a chariot as it rode around on top of the large walls and in her excitement, Shireen spoke of the races they'd sometimes hold there. Davos listened keenly as she told him more of the founding of this city and its customs than any but its scholars would know.
They had their lunch at the docks, outside rather than inside a tavern. Both of them looked out on the massive fleet and Shireen spoke of her excitement of going home as well as her fears of the war to come. The princess had faith in her father, as much as Davos himself had, yet she was no fool and she knew full well the risk that any war brought with it. As she spoke, he reached out and took her hand in his and offered her as much reassurance as he could. Then he offered a prayer to the Seven who are one and to the Maiden herself to keep her safe from harm and to take him rather than her if someone needed to die.
She hugged him tightly when he said his goodbyes for the night and though he wished to go back to the tavern, eat his meal, and take to his bed, he'd not do so without speaking to his king first. So it was inside the Red Temple and not outside of it that he walked and each step he took inside filled him with a sense of foreboding. That feeling of being watched by countless eyes only grew as he moved deeper into the Red Temple and by the time he reached his king's rooms, Davos felt more uncomfortable than he had for an age. Waiting until he was bid to enter, he noticed the looks that some were giving him. Looks that to his mind named him a non-believer and were filled with distrust.
"His grace will see you know, Ser Davos." a guard whose name escaped him at that moment said and he walked into the large rooms to find his king and the Lady Melisandre to be the only ones inside.
"Your Grace," he said as Stannis turned from the large map on the table that he was leaning on, a map that showed Westeros in all its glory and was a poor substitute for the Painted Table on Dragonstone to Davos' eye.
"My daughter is well, Ser Davos?" Stannis asked.
"Very much so, Your Grace. The Princess much enjoyed her day as did I."
"Good. It's to be the last one either of us spends here unburdened by work."
"Your grace?
"Lady Melisandre has seen the Golden Company's arrival in the flames, Ser Davos, they'll be here on the morrow and I wish them to be aboard the ships within a week of their arrival. I leave it in your hands to see it so."
"Of course, your grace, as you command."
"It's almost time for me to take my throne, Ser Davos. To see what is mine by right finally given to me."
"I look forward to seeing you upon the Iron Throne, your grace, where you belong," he said honestly and truly and though Stannis didn't smile, there was enough in his expression to show he welcomed his words.
He was dismissed a few moments later and made his way back to the tavern where he ate and then went to his bed. The thoughts that they'd soon be sailing back to Westeros filled his head as did thoughts of the battles to come. Davos wondered if the Lannisters and Tyrells had been defeated by those allied against them. Was it a lion who sat on the throne that was rightfully his king's or was it a dragon? If he being honest he found he hoped it was the former and not the latter. For as formidable as the Golden Company were, it had always been the dragons who'd brought about their defeat.
One week later.
Men, horses, and elephants, never had he seen a force like it before. Looking to his king, he could see how much he relished seeing the men in front of him and how pleased he was by how quickly they'd managed to load them onto the ships. It took longer to load the supplies than it did the men truth be told. The sheer amount of food and water they needed for the journey to Westeros was staggering. Yet it had been gathered easily and loaded eventually.
Though he sailed on the Black Betha and not on the Fury with his king, he did sail near the front of the fleet. He'd been given a placement that he knew some would take issue with and yet he cared not. He was glad to leave this city behind him, happy that he'd have no true reason to ever come back here again. The war he sailed to would be one where he either saw his king crowned and was lucky enough to survive it or one that cost him his life and he knew not which was to be his fate. Looking to the Fury, he could see his King, Queen, Lady Melisandre, and Princess Shireen all on its deck and he felt the wind pick up as the ships sailed off.
They would land within a moon, be at war within two and he felt it would be a quick one. He was not privy to the battle plans themselves, only the location for where that battle would be fought and he smiled at the cleverness of his king. An army needed a base to operate in, one to see supplies gathered and there was no place better for that than the one his king had chosen. Looking to the sky, he saw the sails catch the wind and felt the breeze on his face. Then he saw a large black bird flying high and for some reason, it sent a shudder down his spine, something he didn't understand the reason for until he took to his bed later that night.
'It looks like a dragon' was the thought that woke him up sweating and worried. It took him some time to fall back to sleep and for the next few days, he looked to the sky as much as he did to the sea.
The Kingswood 299 AC.
Rhaegar Targaryen.
He felt it the closer he got to King's Landing. A feeling that took him some time to truly grasp the truth of. More of his family had been murdered in this place than any other. His brother and sister, his grandfather and two uncles on his mother's side, even his mad grandfather who had taken the lives of the other side of his kin, had been murdered here. Though he mourned Aerys not. That was just in the last generation or so. For if he was to go back further then he'd find even more of his family who'd been killed in this city. It sent a shiver down his spine and thankfully it was one that Arya in front of him didn't feel.
This would be where he'd be naming his home. Where he and his wife would raise their children. He found himself wondering if that shiver down his spine was a warning to be more vigilant than others of his kin had been in this city or more likely, to always be aware of what this city did to people. Soon enough they could see the city itself and he knew it was time for them to fly over it and show those below that the dragons had truly arrived. By now those inside the gates would have heard of the battle and that it had been their army who had won it and not their own. So it was time to show them that to resist or fight against them was an exercise in futility.
"Arya, it's time we fly once more," he said to his sister and felt her excitement rise as he turned to Arthur and nodded.
Within moments, they had dismounted and were walking toward the dragons, Dany was already there which he was glad to see. They'd spent little time together as they rode. Both of them were eager to take the measure of those with them and to be seen treating each of them equally. It had been something that Aemon had told them both before they had left the comforts of Dragonstone. Advice that he'd given them that they'd both taken to heart and Rhaegar had no need to question whether it had been good advice. Not given the looks he'd seen directed at both him and his wife during the ride.
"Continue on the march, Prince Oberyn, Ser Richard, and Thoros will command our men and once you arrive, make ready for a siege," he said to the prince and those with him.
"You think we'll need to siege the city, your grace?" Randyll Tarly asked almost sounding as if he wished it so.
"No. This won't be a siege, Lord Tarly. If we're forced to attack then it'll be to the gates that her grace and I take the dragons and we'll open them for you to ride through." he said to a nod from the older man.
That had been the plan he'd settled on with Arthur's help. Rhaegar had never been to the city other than but briefly when rescuing Sansa. Then he'd barely looked at the city itself other than their entrance into it and their escape from it. Arthur had served here and while in some ways it may have changed, in others it had very much not. The gates and the routes behind those gates that led to various different parts of the city were still the same. Their path to the Red Keep was still the same and while he and Dany would not use the dragons within the city itself, they would use them to open those gates and to strike fear in those who defended the city from them.
Given the numbers they had, the city would fall, and the only fear he had in regards to their men was the potential use of Wildfire. The Lannisters had used it against Stannis Baratheon and he knew not if they had more or had used it all. While it had been the arrival of Tywin Lannister's army and of the Reach's that had in the end won the day, Stannis had paid a heavy cost before their arrival. It was not a cost that he wished his men to be forced to pay and so it was one that caused him some concerns. These though he kept to himself and to Arthur, and not even Dany had he spoken of them.
"We're just to fly?" Dany asked as she readied to climb onto Drogon's back, Rhaegal and Viserion both looking just as keen as her own and his dragon to be in the sky.
"Aye. We're here to show them first the dragons and then the army that has marched against them. We're not to lay down any flames for the now." he said as he moved to her and placed a kiss on her cheek.
"And if we are later?" Dany asked.
"Then we do so with the same restraint you showed in Lannisport. The fear of the flames, my love, rather than the truth of them," he said to a nod of her head.
With that, he, Arya, and Arthur climbed up on Ōñosmaghare's back, and Dany and Ser Jorah did the same onto Drogon's. It had been Arya who'd pointed out that him flying with a Kingsguard while his wife did not may look as if they cared more for him than her and not that he was more comfortable with others with him on his dragon's back. So from now on, unless it was just the two of them flying together, neither of them would fly alone.
He felt Ōñosmaghare's eagerness for the flight and that his dragon wished to see the city that was to be their home and the home of his brothers. Mayhap that was why they took to the sky so quickly and why the city was underneath them within the blink of an eye. When he bid Ōñosmaghare roar, he did so with no hesitation, and soon enough his roar was answered by those of the three dragons that flew some feet away from them. What it looked like to those below he could only guess at, but while guards moved into position, Rhaegar was certain he saw others desert theirs. None however were fool enough to attack the dragons. Not that their bows or the few scorpions that he could see would be enough to reach them given how high they flew.
Flying over the Dragonpit, he felt Ōñosmaghare's anger that this was where dragons had been confined and he told him that it would never be where he would name his home. Something that pleased him greatly. Seeing the Great Sept beneath them, he turned his eyes to his wife and wondered if like him, she was thinking what it would have been like to wed in such a place. Had their lives been different then they would have. Though he found he was more than happy with where, when, and how they were wed.
"Smoke, brother." he heard Arya call out and he saw it ahead of him.
" Konīr Ōñosmaghare, gūrogon nyke konīr." (There Ōñosmaghare, take me there.) he said and his dragon did as he was bid.
A ship burned on the docks, while men in green livery surrounded men in crimson and gold. Looking through his dragon's eyes, he could see what looked to be the bodies of a woman and a man being helped away, unconscious or dead he knew not. Though he couldn't be certain he'd name them Tyrells and Lannisters. For who else could they be and then the thought took hold right away.
He bid Ōñosmaghare fly to the Red Keep and motioned with his hand for Dany to follow him. When they'd come here to rescue his sister, he'd seen it only from a distance and from the ground. Seeing it from atop a dragon's back was much different and he found it to be a more impressive sight. Looking over at his wife's face, he could see that she seemed excited, happy even. Rhaegar wondered to himself how many nights she'd spent dreaming of this sight above all. Even more than Dragonstone or Westeros itself, he wagered that it was the Red Keep that had filled his wife's dreams.
The Lannister and Tyrell flags flew no more atop the Red Keep and he heard Arthur's chuckle from behind him when he noticed the white one that flew there instead. Be it worrying about what prisoners he held after the Battle of the Kingsroad, or knowing that to try and hold the city against dragons was futile, it seemed that the Tyrells had finally decided to kneel. Whether or not the Lannisters had too, he wasn't certain. Though given what he'd seen at the docks, he now believed they'd been brought to their knees regardless. With another look to his wife, he bid Ōñosmaghare to fly back to their army and with one more roar from him and his brothers, his dragon did as he'd asked of him.
They landed a little distance from the marching men. Rhaegar was keen to speak to Dany without any interruption so that they could present their findings as a united front. After helping Arya down from Ōñosmaghare's back, he walked to thank the Black Dragon for bringing them to their knees. He told Ōñosmaghare that it was him and his brothers who'd won them the victory that they'd soon be celebrating and heard his trill at his words. Once he'd done so, he then moved to Dany and told her what he believed had happened, Arthur and Jorah both agreeing and Arya seeming almost put out that there was to be no fight.
"You truly believe they'll just surrender the city?" Dany asked.
"I think they understand their position and fear their fate if they do not. We'll take no chances, but Aye, I believe there won't be a fight to take the city, it'll be words that do so instead."
"So it's done?" Dany asked hopefully.
"Aye, I think it may very well be."
He spoke to Oberyn and the rest of the Lords who made up his army and they all seemed to agree. So it was on horseback that they arrived at the gates of the city, there to find a flag of truce and an invitation to a parley. One that would lead to the end of a war that had taken him and his wife less than a few moons to a year to win and one that had by the god's good graces cost them little. In the sky above them, all four dragons flew and Rhaegar knew it was an impassive sight. Yet as he looked to the walls of the city in the distance, he felt that shiver run down his spine once more.
Kings Landing 299 AC.
Ōñosmaghare.
His rider had bid him to show off his might just by using his roar and not his flames and so he'd done so. As they flew over the city, he and his brothers had let those below them know that they could and would let loose their flames if they dared to harm his rider, his brother's rider, the hatchlings she carried, or any that his rider cared for. He would see them all burn. Melt the stone of these buildings just as he had the stone towers if they dared to harm his rider or his brother's rider.
Drogon he knew felt the same and both Viserion and Rhaegal could feel the truth of the hatchlings even more than he. They knew that those hatchlings were now soon to come and that fuelled their own wariness at any who looked their mother's way. When he flew over the place that dragons had named their home once, he felt it as did his brothers. This was not where dragons should be confined to, for confined there was what in the end they'd been. He would not be confined so, his brothers would not be confined so. As it had been since they'd bonded, his rider felt his worries and his concerns and did all he could to assuage them.
"That will never be your home, Ōñosmaghare, never your fate." his rider said and Ōñosmaghare and his brothers roared out their approval at his words.
When he was asked to fly to the source of the smoke, he did so quickly. While his rider looked through his eyes, Ōñosmaghare looked at the pitiful fire that burned on the water. It had not been a dragon who'd brought their flames to bear and set this fire. The fire that burned had not been the same as the ones he'd let loose on those wooden things that had threatened their home and so he gave it no more notice and cared for it not.
They flew over the city and the people below, he and his brothers asking once more if their flames were to be let loose and finding yet again that they were not. It was to the towers the color of fire that his rider bid him next and he felt it when he got there. This was to be his rider's home, the home of his brother's rider and this was where the hatchlings would be hatched. He soon felt something else too, his rider's joy and it took him some time to find out why that was. Not until they'd left the city behind did he learn the reason for it and when he did, he trilled loudly.
He, he was the reason. His rider told him so. He praised him for winning him this city and told him that it was just because of who he was that had made that so.
"They fear you, Ōñosmaghare, they fear you and your brothers and are right to do so. Thank you, my friend, for this, for it all, thank you."
Later though he felt something else, not fear, for his rider feared not, yet still it was something he'd not felt from him before. Through his bond with his rider, he felt it was this place, this city, these walls, and the people inside and he once again asked him if he and his brother should let loose their flames. Again his rider told him, no, yet Ōñosmaghare felt some hesitancy in his rider too. There was something about this place his rider liked not, something that caused him to feel this thing that was fear but not. Whatever it was, should his rider bid it of him, then it too would feel his flames, and should any dare to test his rider, they'd find him waiting for them, alert and ever vigilant. For without his rider there was no him, not anymore.
A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed. Up next: As Rhaegar and Dany accept a surrender, Aemon and Shiera along with Cat and Sansa set sail for King's Landing. Ravens are sent, victory is declared and the fate of prisoners is discussed before Aemon sends Rhaegar flying North to deal with events at the Wall. In Pentos final arrangements are made for another claimant to the Iron Throne to reveal his presence, while in the North, prisoners are escorted to White Harbor and King's Landing to face justice. To the victors go the spoils while those who lost worry about their fates, as Oberyn and Olenna, face very different futures. For those following my other fics, Am I My Brothers Keeper is up later this week.
Daryl Dixon: So glad you liked it.
Suppes: really happy you enjoyed it.
Celexys: I tried to give him an end worthy of him, I'm so happy you're liking the Ōñosmaghare bits, I wanted to do something different with the dragons and it allows me to show an insight into their minds.
Anegloux: I get that, he's both been unlucky and lucky here. I wanted to not just go with the usual of him just blindly accepting Jon and of Jon just being willing to give up the North, which just doesn't ring true for me. There would be emotions at play, warring ones, Robb suddenly finding out his bastard brother was above him in rank and he'd been lied to all his life, and Jon trying to be a king as much if not more than a brother when it came to how he looked at the North. But once he doesn't kneel immediately and tries to keep his crown, no matter if you think he was right to, then he has to be punished for it. In this he's been lucky, as were it anyone other than Jon, it would have been the Wall or death, something you'll see when Jon deals with Edmure.
Aaronstars: So glad you enjoyed it, count no more lol.
Stacystan: Thanks so much, I promised myself when I started writing that I'd leave no story unfinished and I meant it, Different Song will be updated and completed soon, I just don't yet have an exact timeframe on it.
Rhatch: Exactly, it's the curse of modern storytelling where you have hacks who think they can subvert the Hero's Journey or that they know better than all the great writers that came before them. There is a reason why a certain sort of storyline has endured for so long and to throw away years of plot and character development for a Boom Twist moment is just pathetic. To make things work, they have characters forget things they know or know things they couldn't possibly have learned, hit them with the moron stick, and elevate other characters not in actions, but in words. They see a moment and go, wouldn't that be cool, rather than go, that makes no fucking sense. This is what we got at the end of the show, all these characters suddenly became amnesiacs and forget what they'd learned, which is sort of summed up by the whole "Dany kinda forget about the Iron Fleet" BS when she literally speaks on them one episode earlier. They go from Jon being George Washington and cannot tell a lie, to him literally lying about why he knelt the next episode and then have him be a mute for the rest of the season, so they can push forward a nonsensical plotline and as for Arya killing the NK and the BS that they gave about a throwaway line being their foreshadowing the less said the better.
I think more than anything though the proof is in the pudding with those two, there is a clear reason why they've hidden ever since the show ended and haven't yet released any new show, they're trying to get the stink of the worst ending of a tv show ever off of them, they'll not.
Dunk: I felt it had to be Oberyn to end Tywin, Jon got his vengeance and justice with Lorch and Arthur with the Mountain, so it needed to be Oberyn. Benjen just gets so underutilized that I wanted to have him play a larger plot role here, he's not half-dead Benjen either, so he can pass the Wall himself. Plus I wanted the upcoming reunion. Hope you like what I did here with King's Landing, I look forward to your thoughts. On Tyrion, he, I think is smart enough to see flaws in fAegon's story, but more so in their plans. When Jon Connington learns about Arthur and Ser Richard Lonmouth he's going to shit himself lol.
Guest: Really happy you're liking it.
JARDfan: Sie benutzten die Drachen, um die Linien zu durchbrechen, Chaos zu verursachen und ihre Flammen nur dort freizusetzen, wo es nötig war. Ihre eigenen Männer waren also nie durch die Brände gefährdet. Als Rhaegar landete, wartete Robb bereits mit den anderen auf ihn, sodass er nicht nach ihm oder einem von ihnen suchen musste. Außerdem würde er durch Ghosts eigene Gefühle wissen, ob jemand aus seiner Familie gefallen war.
Xan Merrick; We'll see more reactions next chapter.
Emma: Olenna made what she thinks was the only move left open to her here, next we'll see her try and politic her way to the best possible outcome and fight a battle she's more equipped for, but their time as LP and Wardens is over.
Guest: Hope you enjoy it.
Jonsmom: This was the first move and maybe the only one Olenna had, next she'll try and gain the best possible deal that her situation allows her to make. Glad you liked that about the babes, we'll not have too long to wait for them to be born. The war with the Others is pretty much the entire reason for what Bloodraven set in motion in regards to Shiera, Dany, and Rhaegar.