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Face Claim for Queen Sanira: Caitlin Stasey.
Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Abdication of Tommen.
"Your Grace. Welcome to Driftmark," Lady Laena Velaryon greeted stepping forward with a small curtsy, it was hard to believe that this was really happening that her father's murder by the Lannister's would finally be brought to justice. Lord Monford Velaryon had supported the claim of Stannis since the death of Robert, he had been proud to raise the Velaryon banners for his lord and the Battle of Blackwater would have been his defining moment.
Instead he had been blown up by wild fire and had left Laena's six year old brother as the new Lord of Driftmark and herself as his regent at eighteen years old. It had been Laena that had held down the fort while the men were away fighting, it had been her that had made sure that their house maintained their position.
"Thank you Lady Laena." Sanira replied smiling, it had been a long journey and she was exhausted from travelling; she wished that she had been able to speak with Robb in person but it hadn't been possible as of yet. The instructions of her arrival here had been rather secretive and Sanira knew that the final moves of this war were finally upon them; it seemed like after six years that things were coming to a head.
"The white raven arrived this morning. The maesters confirm that winter is finally upon us," Laena stated looking over the small gathering that Sanira had brought with her, most of her men would likely have been docked at Rook's Rest before the final march to meet up with the rest of the army. Jon smiled at that, his father had always told him that winter was coming; he had been right and he knew that they had to be prepared for what was about to arrive with the winter.
"It's taken long enough," Sanira noted with a sad smile, she would much rather be at Winterfell with her son right now but she had a part to play in all of this and she couldn't let Tommen down. Tommen's letters had stopped when Sanira had left Castle Black, she was sure that there was a lot happening right now that needed his attention especially with the trial of Cersei and Margaery.
"May I introduce the Lord of Driftmark. My brother Monterys," Laena said smiling, he was eleven years old now and she knew that she would do anything to protect his position. Especially from their grasping relatives who would happily cast them aside to steal her brother's birth right, she would do anything to make sure that didn't happen.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Grace," Monterys said bowing to Sanira from behind his elder sister, she was the only real family that he had left after the death of both of their parents. He would have been lost without her, she was everything to him; he didn't know what he would ever do without her here to guide him.
"The pleasure is mine, thank you for opening up your home to us," Sanira replied with a kind smile to the boy, he reminded her of her own little brother who she missed so dearly. Deston would be fifteen now, she couldn't recall the last time that she had laid eyes on; she prayed that he was well and safe wherever he was.
"What is that smoke?" Jon asked nodding towards the plume in the sky, it seemed to be coming from so far away and he couldn't imagine what could have caused such a fire that it could be seen from miles away. There was quiet as his question and Laena looked awkward, she rested a hand on her brother's shoulder as she thought about all those poor souls that had been lost.
"The Great Sept of Baelor," Laena told him, she couldn't imagine the terror that everyone must have felt in their last moments; the stories spreading quickly about what Cersei had done. The flames could be seen from here and the smoke had lasted for days, no doubt the flames still burning from within the rubble of what was left of the sept.
"They say even the king is a prisoner now to his own mother," Monterys added quietly, the stories coming from King's Landing were horrifying and there was no escaping from the madness that had descended upon the Queen Mother. Sanira stared at Laena, her stomach turning at that news and she knew that they had to plan their next steps carefully. Cersei would not allow Tommen to leave of his own free will, she had him under his control now and she would use him to further her own agenda.
Sitting in his chambers, Tommen couldn't wrap his head around what the last few days had become in his life; his wife and her family had been murdered along with most of the court by his own mother. There was no doubt in his mind what had happened and he knew that only his mother could be behind all of this; he hadn't left his room in days and had refused to see Cersei when she had come to his rooms.
Not that it had really stopped his mother from entering and trying to win him around, saying that she had done all of this protect him and they only had each other to rely on. Tommen had ignored her, he couldn't bare to look at her and he prayed each night that help would come to free him of this prison that he found himself in.
His eyes stared at the crown that he didn't even want, a crown that had been placed upon his head after the death of his brother and he knew that it was never meant for him. The alliance with the Tyrells was dead, whispers coming to the capital that Willas had reached out to Stannis to ally with him after the murder of his father, his mother, younger brother and younger sister.
The new Lord Tyrell would not be forgiving for what had happened, House Lannister was alone now with no one to turn to with Stannis likely marching on the capital as he sat here. Before him sat the parchment were he intended to write his abdication, he didn't wish to remain her for another moment and an exit strategy had been presented to him. In the two years of him being King, he had never felt as empowered as he did right now when he was about to sign away his rights to the throne.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Tyene Sand asked him, it was a big step that he was about to take and she knew that there was no going back once he had signed the parchment and renounced his rights to the throne. His mother would likely never forgive him for what he was about to do, if she knew what he planned then she would likely disown him or force him to be locked in this chamber for the rest of his life while she ruled in his name.
"I've never been so sure of it in my life," Tommen admitted looking to Tyene and her sister, it was something that he had wished he could have done when the Sparrows seized power. He wasn't suited for governance and he would make a poor king when he couldn't protect anyone from his mother; she would rage upon learning of his abdication.
"If you are ready," Varys said handing the quill to Tommen, he had been sent by Stannis to lead the young boy from King's Landing where he would be sent to Driftmark and into the care of Queen Sanira who was waiting there for him. The Sandsnakes would be coming with them, the armies starting to descend on King's Landing for the final battle; House Lannister left weakened by their removal of House Tyrell as their allies. Tommen nodded his head and took the quill from him, he took a deep breath before dipping the quill into the ink on his desk before writing the letter of abdication.
I, Tommen of the House Baratheon the First of My Name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, Lord Paramount of the Stormlands and Lord of Storm's End do hereby declare My irrevocable determination to renounce the Throne for myself and my line of descendants and My desire that effect should be given to this Instrument of Abdication immediately.
In token whereof I have hereunto set my hand this day 22nd day of the 5th moon of 303AC in the presence of witnesses whose signatures are subscribed.
Then Tommen signed the parchment before handing the quill to Varys so that he might also sign, he stood from the chair that he had been seated in before removing the crown from his head and placing it upon the pillow. A massive weight had been lifted from his shoulders, Tommen felt free for the first time in years; he watched as Tyene signed the parchment after Varys had done so. Once the ink had dried, the parchment was wrapped up carefully and Varys would take it straight to Stannis once he had delivered Tommen to Sanira who was eagerly waiting his arrival.
"It is time to make our escape," Varys noted knowing that they could not linger and the cover of darkness would help them, it would not take long for Cersei to learn what had transpired here. The last thing any of them needed was for them to be captured during their escape, Cersei would kill anyone who threated her power afterall.
Moving through the dark tunnels that had only two years earlier been used for the escape of his uncle, Tommen followed closely behind Varys as they made their way through the caves towards the ocean. It was cold in the tunnels and Tommen wrapped his arms around him, his head low as they moved and his heart pounded in his chest knowing that at any moment they could be discovered and he would be forced back.
His mother would have never let him leave, after she had murdered his wife and Uncle Kevan; Cersei had seized control of his small council, filling it with her yes men who only answered to her. Maester Pycelle had been another victim of his mother's actions, the once loyal Lannister man had been killed in his chambers during the explosion that had taken the Great Sept.
It felt like forever before finally the ocean came into view, a small boat waiting for them with soldiers there waiting to carry them across the sea away from King's Landing. Tommen glanced nervously behind him as he worried that they would be found, he didn't know what he would do if they were caught and he knew that his mother would never let him leave again.
"Tommen," Varys called to him softly, his eyes taking in the fourteen year old's face and knowing that his life was never going to be the same; it wasn't going to be easy leaving everything that he had ever known behind. Tommen snapped out of his thoughts, he nodded his head before climbing into the boat; his eyes focused on the dark entrance to the cave that they had exited.
Even as the small boat slowly made its way into the darkness, Tommen's eyes remained focused on the Red Keep; his heart pounding in his ears until finally they made their way towards Driftmark. The cold night air whirled around them and Tommen shivered wishing that he had dressed warmer, his hands rubbing his arms as he tried to keep warm and he ignored the chatter around him.
Varys watched the boy with interest, he had only offered to transport him to Sanira so that he might get close to the Queen in the North; a power house that had changed the course of this war. The fact that Sanira had somehow gained the loyalty of the Golden Company was something that could not be ignored, she had taken back the North and gain the support of the Vale since Robb Stark had taken Casterly Rock.
Varys had been a part of a group of people who saw that Robert Baratheon for the disaster that he truly was, they had tried to do what was best for the realm by supporting Targaryen restoration. It had been the beginning of a chain of events that had led to this moment, things had gotten worse not better and Westeros needed to be saved from itself.
The whispers coming from Meereen were not promising, the Targaryen restoration had fallen apart when it became clear that Daenerys Targaryen was a fine conqueror but a poor ruler. And it appeared that the person to do what Varys had dreamed of, was a lot closer to home than he ever could have imagined; Sanira Tremaine was not what he could have ever pictured. She was everything that the realm needed after a war, a Queen that was compassionate and would defend her people; she had made her mistakes that could have cost her, her life and learned from it.
Finally after hours of slowly sailing across Blackwater Bay, Driftmark came into view and Tommen turned in his seat as they made their approach to the ancestral home of House Velaryon. Dawn slowly started to break as they made their final approach, figures waiting on the shoreline and Tommen squinted trying to see who was there.
The boat was docked and they made the slow climb up the steps, lead by some loyal soldiers to House Velaryon who lead them up the winding steps away from the ocean and towards the castle on Driftmark. Tommen was shivering by the time that they got to the top but his eyes weld with tears as he finally saw who was waiting for him on the steps leading to the castle.
"Tommen," Sanira greeted softly, relieved that his escape had been successful as she had feared that he would be captured during the escape especially considering what had happened to the Great Sept. Cersei would do anything to secure her own power, the loss of Tommen would shake the foundation of everything now and in the coming days the final battle would take place.
Tommen rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Sanira, tears finally falling as it dawned on him that he was actually free.
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