Chapter Eight
Review Reply: For Haruhi330. Thanks for the English compliment understanding. My English is not perfect to say the least or my grammar either, I admit. Now about Harry's Age, or in this case, Delianah. Her original age is six but she looks somewhere between ten-twelve years old due to aging potion (I realized I should have specified her using that). Her pink and red hair is yes, dyed, at least the pink one but the red is natural due to House Tully. About her natural look, as I've checked on the Game of Thrones world, children grow fast. Fourteen years old and they basically are almost young women and married off to have children. So I assumed that at her current form of ten-twelve, she is in what we say, blooming stage. Thanks for the review though and for pointing out stuff that I miss.
For Liz: I cant understand you lmao XD
For SentinalSlice: You have to understand, Harry is an adult trapped in a young girl's body. She is literally babyfied minus her brain. Now the reason why she is using aging potion is because A.) she's naturally wanting a semblance of normalcy or her closer to adulthood subconsciously. B.) She believes that by looking mature, she might gain the respect of the Lords and people of the Riverlands. Because seriously, who would respect her in her original babyfide form?
And no, she will not have hormones(Or maybe itll interfere later. It's a fun thought and one that I will seriously consider).
…
"Do you swear upon this hall that you will serve the interests of Riverrun, to protect and defend it?"
"I swear!"
"Do you swear to care for the lands granted to you and the people entrusted there?"
"I swear!"
"Do you swear to be just and fair to your knights, to the minor lords that have swear allegiance to you?"
"I swear!"
"Do you swear for your fealty at House Tully as Lord Paramount of Riverrun? To uphold its laws and to answer as its bannerman when called upon?"
"I swear!"
"Then rise my daughter, as Lady Tully of Harrenhal. May the Seven grant you wisdom, grace and courage for you to rule over your lands as our ancestors have done for a thousand years. I Lord Hoster Tully bear witness to this and so do all the other Lords here. Aye?!"
"AYE!" a dozen and more throats shouts in kind followed by applause.
"Take the space then my daughter," Hoster Tully says indicating the space in front of the High Table.
Delianah simply nods as she takes the center of attention. The applause is still ongoing and she lets a smile appear on her face as she raises a hand and waves it at the watching Lords and Laddies. The smile she has though is anything but perfect. Looking down below at the cheering Lords and Ladies applauding her it almost feels like one of her tours as Harry the Great back in her previous life. She doesn't need to use Legilimency to know however that these peacoks are anything but honest about their praise. Half of them do not approve of her due to being a bastard, and the other half approves of her because she can be beneficial to them in one way or another. Either way, the only reason that they are even clapping for her is because she is a Tully by name and because all of them are suck-ups to Lord Tully who is watching.
Still, it's nothing to worry about for her personally. When she's done with her plans, they would all stare at her the same way but in awe and envy. Time to play the game though.
"My lords, my ladies," she inclines her head to them (she does not bow, she never bows). "I truly thank you for your support and for your presence this Harvest Feast. I swear I will do my utmost to serve the interests of House Tully and Riverrun as a whole," she mentally smirks a she can practically hear the grinding of teeth that Jason Mallister is doing. House Tully got a powerful supporter through her of course. Time to dissuade him of that notion.
"I would also like to thank my father for his recognition of me and so that of my brother who had graciously given me the chance to experience how it is to handle a castle of my own,"
She almost lost it as she can practically feel the hostility emanating from Edmure for the reminder of how he neglected his duties as heir. On the other hand, the listening audience is terribly amused and satisfied. Almost all of them after all suffered from Edmure's mismanagement the second she left. She can feel some are disapproving of her though, probably because she is a bastard insulting the rightful heir.
"Time to wrap this up. Long speeches never work well,"
"That is all I have to say my lords and ladies. As for my gratitude for attending this Harvest Feast and my ascencion as Lady of Harrenhal, and also as a member of House Tully. Please… do accept my gratitude. Raising her hands, Delianah claps twice.
Immediately a host of servants appeared carrying platters of dishes that none of the attending Lords and had ever seen before.
At first glance it might have looked like a regular cooked chicken. The ones being placed at their tables however look bigger than any chicken they had been served. There's one that is coloured a show-stopping cranberry orange with salt and some unknown herbs on it; another that looks like a regular cooked one but the smell coming from it is mouthwatering; one looks like it took a salt bath with grey and brown seasonings at its front; there are those who sits forlornly surrounded by oranges and lemons half cut, giving the large chicken a mesmerizing look; there's another that stands like a knight, armored in butter, one swimming in marinade, some cut already, simply ready to be taken and eaten, others roasted, glazed, and one resting overlooking a gravy. There's also the weird grain like things smoking and molded together in a cuplike structure at each plate. All in all, a menu that they have never seen before.
"Compliments of mine my lord, and the products that would soon be ready to be sold by my lands of Harrenhal. Feel free to dig in my lords and ladies, and do please enjoy," Delianah declares with a regal bow.
The watching Lords no longer need any permission as they eagerly dive into the new cuisine. Soon the entire Hall is filled with the sounds of cutlery as the attendants eagerly devoured their food. Delianah can't help the smug filled look at her face as they eagerly devoured the turkeys she had just contributed to the Harvest Feast(the familiar fish provided by the main House Tully sadly forgotten at the sides). She has no doubt that at the end of the week, Lord Viktor would be besieged by ravens demanding the export of spices, rice and Turkey meat from Harrenhal. Her merchants would be selling Delianite to other houses soon, not only to the Riverlands. It is after all very limited and as such can only be sold at a very high price. She has no doubt that it will sell well, the rarer an item, the more the people crave it, especially if it is beautiful.
"It is not a chicken is it Lady Delianah?" a sweet voice speaks up jolting the Lady of Harrenhal out of her thoughts.
She blinks as she stares at soft green eyes looking back at her that belongs to a young girl. She blinks as she notices the Kingsguard at her side. Delianah immediately kicks herself. She has been so engrossed with her plan that she deftly forgot about the princess whose seat is beside her at the High Table. A sliced piece off turkey is in front of her probably cut by a servant from the main table.
"Apologies your highness," Delianah begins to say while mentally cursing herself for being so woefully inobservant. All her effort all this time might be lost if an insulted royal feels the need to butt in. "I did not see you there,"
"It's alright my lady," the princess gives off a soft eye smile that makes Delianah blink in surprise. She's a second from confounding to hell and back this royal in order to avoid problems that might damage her plans in the long run. That smile from the princess however makes those thoughts stop in a grinding halt. There's no deception in that smile of hers.
Harry had been exposed to enough dark wizards and their minions back home that his secondary lying detector was basically instinct. The smile that the princess is giving her is genuine not like the eating chattering monkeys down below.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Lady Delianah," the princess continues saying. "I am Myrcella Baratheon, first princess of the realm. You can call me Myrcella for short, minus the princess part. I do look forward for us to being friends my lady,"
Delianah blinks at her intentions being stated so directly.
"Did no one teach this girl about subtlety?" she wonders to herself. Still, her words need a reply.
"Friends? Your highness?" she repeats to the princess who nods her head with a beaming smile.
"Yes and it's Myrcella not your Highness okay? I want you to be my friend. I have heard so much about you Lady Delianah from my father. You are my age but you have accomplished so much already. You also look older, how do you do that? And why are you not wearing a dress though I admit your outfit fits you perfectly? How did you found out how to cook something as delicious as this," she rambles on catching Delianah off by surprise.
Her words, actions, and desperation; it all reminds her of a young boy stuck in a cupboard with no one in his life. It is a long time, a sad time, a very lonely phase of his life. That's also the reason why he is so loyal to his first friends, despite the fact that one of them had a character of a lazy, jealous troll.
Here is an opportunity to golden to resist.
"Tell you what your highness,"
"Myrcella!"
Despite herself, Delianah cannot stop the small smile that appears on her lips at the rather demanding but cute protest. "Let us enjoy this Harvest Feast at the moment. I will tell you all about the food that you are eating right now. Later however let us have a ride around the Castle and I'll tell you everything about Harrenhal and my lands, plus I would answer all your questions, deal your Highness?"
"Deal! And it's Myrcella! Not your Highness!" replies the cute six year old puffing out her cheeks.
As Delianah smiles back, a part of her feels terrible about using the Princess for her personal scehemes.
…..
Hoster Tully would never say it out loud but he is both proud and impressed about his bastard daughter. Like everyone else, he has also tasted the food that she donated for the feast and he can quite confidently say that Riverrun would be ordering a lot of it as soon as possible. He can espy her talking to the Crown Princess at the left of the table, and judging from the rather happy smile that the princess is doing, the two of them are hitting it perfectly. That is good, being friends with a royal always pay in dividends in the long run, look at Robert Baratheon and Eddard Stark. The only reason the North is not paying the extra taxes that is being placed on the country to help pay for the Crown's Debts is because Robert feels "Good old Ned doesn't need any more problems in his plate"
Brilliant, beautiful, and responsible, she is more than ready to be the Lady of Harrenhal. While he disapproved at first though of her taking over the houses of her neighbors', he rather admits it is good in a way seeing that the influence of House Tully in the region is getting a significant boost; something that would be beneficial to the House itself.
Oh only if Edmure would be using his brains instead of his balls, then he might also be something like her sister. But noooooo, the idiot instead of taking the opportunity into sucking up to a royal is instead once more hanging with his friends. Already he can espy much to his disgust him and his buddies playing a drinking game and in the middle of the Harvest Feast of all times!
What is he going to do with that boy?
Despite her success though, Hoster is a bit worried about Delianah. Despite six name days old, the girl looks almost ten or eleven, nothing like her age. This is Westeros of course and many say that the weight of responsibility forces a child to grow fast. Delianah has many responsibilities and she does it well.
There are also rumors however that the Green Men of the Godseye, swear allegiance to her. Now that's disturbing. Is their magic the one that transformed her and made her grow older than she would be? Are they reason her daughter is so brilliant? He mentally kicks himself. Grumpkins and Snarks! Magic is not real. Her daughter's success are her own and not because of some voodoo superstition.
The priests of the Seven would certainly not be happy though, if the religion of the Old gods would be practiced at Harrenhal and its lands.
….
"This is impossible!" Castellan Meric Roote, former Lord of this land can literally feel his jaw crashing on the ground as he observes the newly planted land two and a half months ago now filled with a field of gold and green that stretched on forever. Never in his entire life has he seen anything like this.
"It is, I did tell you to trust in our Lady's ways and new plans. The smug reply of Lord Viktor, Castellan of Harrenhal and Delianah's second-in-command. As promised Castellan Roote; you will have supervision authorities to all the current homesteads in this area that will farm the lands. Compensation for your Knightly House as dictated by the law would be given. Do try not to disappoint us.
Meric only dumbly nodded as the surly old man rides off with his "Death Dealer" bodyguards who are all also armoured in black leaving Meric standing there looking dumb at the middle of the road.
Things have changed greatly for his lands ever since Delianah Tully took over. At first he has been expecting to be kicked out along with his family and relatives. After all theya re demoted into a Knightly House that will serve and protect the Lady of Harrenhal. To his surprise though, Lord Viktor assigned him to manage the land as its Castellan though the taxes would not go him but straight to the castle.
Then comes the changes, the management about the creation of towns, the plans for the creation of roads all over his domain, the new farming equipment, ways, and plants (mostly rice and fruits)that would be planted, the news from the once empty mines that they found Delinatie deep below, the plans for the Adventurer's Guild permission for its members to roam the land, the rule for farmers to live in Homesteads, and the rather new rules when it comes to taxes. Frankly all of it makes Meric's head spin in circles.
At first he had been terribly angry at first. After all, he did not expect that the insane overlarge birds which is now identified as "turkeys" were shipped into parts of his lands in great numbers. It would be like asking for a repeat of the previous disaster after all. But lo and behold, the damned oversized birds are rather docile compared to before. When he had asked, the herders in charge of them were rather tight-lipped and could only share that Delianah Tully concocted something on the water they drink that made them into the placid friendly birds they were.
There was also the issue of the slaves. Meric almost rose in rebellion the instant that slaves were added on his smallfolk all over the new three new lands that fall under Delianah's responsibility. Apparently Lord Viktor bought thousands of them at Essos. Almost all of them were farmers, shipmakers, craftsmen, sheperds, herders and worse, five hundred Unsullied of all people. He in fact almost went to the king about this personally. However the Castellan of Harrenhal caught them all in surprise at her next action. Instead of ordering the slaves to work, he announced loudly that they were freed and gave them the option to either stay in the lands of Delianah Tully as citizens with fair work, good wage and better, protected as free men. Suffice it to say almost all chose to stay.
It was evident immediately how different these former slaves were. Many of them were born and raised under the threat of the whip and death. Such incentives were more than enough to galvanize anyone to do their best lest they be mercilessly hurt. The result was better farms, better results for whatever craft they were applying themselves to, and better productivity. However what Meric noticed most indefinitely from them was their loyalty to the Lady of Harrenhal whom they had never met into giving them their freedom. Woe to any man who dare badmouth their savior. There were more than one incident on their land after unhappy peasants badmouthed the Lady of Harrenhal within a former slave's hearing. The Unsullied especially can be lethal in dishing out punishments, willing to do dung duty for days if only to put the moron that insulted their savior out of commission badly.
Meric Roote grumbles to himself though as he returns back to his home. With this large of rice and fruit production, he would be doing the ledger and accounting all night. As he rides his horse though he can't help but wonder to whom would they be selling all this produce.
…..
"She is so awesome!" In all her imagination, Myrcella never expects that the newly minted would be this incredible. She had expected a girl like her age, probably the same height and having a bit more confidence than she does. Delianah Tully however is anything but.
Even seated among the other Lords of the Riverlands, she can see it, her standing tall and proud with her child held high, not the slightest bit of doubt and hesitancy on her actions. If not for the fact that her father told her that Delianah Tully was a legitimized bastard, she might never had suspected it. Every inch of her screamed highborn. She had always been taught by the Faith that Bastards were a result of sin and therefore below those of natural birth. They were weak willed and always plotting and evil at the core. What she saw in Delianah however was not that.
Tall, and very mature for someone her age, she looked not the least weak-willed, there was cunning and mischievousness in her eyes and pride. Myrcella only knows one woman in her entire life who was like that; her mother. However unlike her mother, there was no pettiness or hate oozing from the Lady of Harrenhal. Instead it was confidence and ambition, something that her Lannister blood fully respects.
That's the reason why she accepted Delianah's offer to ride with her around the castle grounds. Apparently "princesses should not see men when they are deep into their cups" according to Delianah. Myrcella would very like to point out that she got a front view seat of that thanks to her father, the professional drunk and unofficial whoremonger, but she did not state it for the sake of her father's pride.
Ser Oakheart of course protested at first and insisted that they bring a retinue of guards before she protested and thus they reduced the guard to four instead of the original twenty he suggested.
Here on this ride, Delianah has shown her what made her different from all the other nobles be it lord or lady she has the pleasure to meet.
Intelligence.
It begun as a simple question. "How do plants grow?" then when she answers, Delianah explains and explains about what she calls the circle of life. How everything interconnects with one another; about how the entire world that they are dwelling is a system that goes on and on for thousands of years. To say that Myrcella is totally enraptured by the things she is telling her. She then tells her about heat, how it is made, the process of fire making it, of how cold affects the heat, chases it. It's so mind boggling.
This changes the perception of Myrcella to her. Yes, with all her regality, exotic beauty and pride, the thing that makes Delianah Tully great is her mind. She is brilliant and intelligent and she puts it to good use.
She will never forget her words: "Know the practice of earth, fire,air and water and the very world will become your tool. Knowledge is power,"
Right there and then she decides that she would be someone like her. She would learn from Delianah Tully even if it's the last thing she does. She would not be some weak-willed princess stuck on the Red Keep subject only to the whims of an evil brother, a drunkard father, and an ignorant father, no. She would be Myrcella Baratheon and she will find her own path. She now only needs to convince her father on this. She has snidely asks Delianah while they are riding if she could also become like her, the Lady of Harrenhal only laughs and replies with an affirmative yes. So at least she knows that she won't be rejected by her once she manages to convince her father.
As these thoughts however mull inside her brain, she fails to see a victorious smirk that appears on the thoughts of her new inspiration, her green eyes blazing with fire at her victory.
…..
Two hours later, a dozen riders left Harrenhal carrying with them a parcel carrying a precious cargo. Their destination, Casterly Rock with a personal message addressed to Tywin Lannister Warden of the West.
…..
Author's Note: Sooo here's another chapter. Hope ya enjoy.
By the way readers. Im watching Camp Cretaceous series so advance warning, I might deviate into trying to write a fanfic about it. Because seriously luvs, Yasmina is hot and well, I'm thinking of an OC which I can pair her with. Unlike Camp Cretaceous though, it would only be the two of them stuck on the island with Ben and Bumpy. It's a nice series.
Also if you love this fic. Please try looking over Be Careful What You Wish For. It's a Frozen fic but filled with fantasy, magic, battles, history, gaming characters and it's a Elsa X Silvanna (from Mobile Legends gaming). Trust me, you'll love it if you're into that genre.