Disclaimer: I don't own any Marvel or Game of Thrones characters seen, mentioned or used.
A dungeon was not as bad as many would think, Peter thought.
Oh it was damp, had an eerie chillness to it that would cause him to shiver occasionally, and the rats were rather loud and annoying, but aside from that, it really wasn't all THAT bad. At least, the cell Peter has been lying in for Gods only knows how long, at least a day, perhaps two. It was surprisingly well furnished in that it had a small wooden desk, one of the legs only half rotted off, an acceptably soft bed with no lice or bed bugs but with sheets smelling of blood and vomit and a small barred window that gave him a uninspiring view of a tree with a bit of the Narrow Sea seen through it's branches and leaves.
"You know, I've always wondered who came up with the concept of dungeons." Peter said as he sat against one of the three stone walls of his small cell, a wall made completely of bars to his right "Like, at some point, someone somewhere woke up one day at some point in the past and thought 'I wanna make a series of rooms underground and use them to keep people imprisoned'. Who just decides that one day?"
His face was covered with multiple blue-ish purple, and green-ish yellow bruises while his neck displayed a certain Targaryen King in exile's hand shaped marks. His tunic was covered in dried blood and grime and his boots had been removed at some point before or after his unconscious body had been dropped in this cell.
"A man who wanted to keep his enemies close for him to play with I assume..." Doreah's voice echoed from the cell next to Peter's.
Did he forget to mention he had some company down here, even if she was in another cell with a solid stone wall between them.
"But it's just... why?" Peter said with a frown as he looked around his cell "All this space down here? Could've made these cells into something useful, like a wine cellar or a granary perhaps. But no, the high and mighty Magister of Pentos decides he wants to make a dungeon."
The sound of shuffling could be heard on the other side of the wall Peter was lying against, the same one he had no doubt Doreah was doing the same with "Would you prefer to be in Pentos's city dungeon with dozens of rapers, killers, and thieves instead of your own cell?"
"No, but a city having a dungeon makes sense. Not some merchant who made a fortune selling cheese to a bunch of useless lords who probably don't even know where cheese comes from." Peter said with a snort.
"Where does it come from?" Doreah asked.
"Milk." Peter answered with a thoughtful look on his face "Cows usually, or goats. Heard sheep's milk can be used too, but I've never tried it. Prefer the cheese you get from the milk of a cow. Goat is... I don't know really, but something about it just never sits right with me. Funny enough, Dany loves it."
"Goat cheese or goat milk?" Doreah asked with a soft chuckle.
"Either, both." Peter replied with a shrug as he peered over his shoulder and stared at the wall between him and Doreah.
He had no idea what state she was in, when questioned if Viserys had hurt her, she laughed his question off and remarked she's 'had worse, from worse men'. Peter wasn't quite sure how to take that, but considering she's yet to sound like she's in any real pain, he's had no choice but to assume that she had gotten off lighter then he had.
Though, Doreah could be a good actor, from what he's seen and heard.
Suddenly a series of horns, out of synch and couldn't carry a tune to save anyone's life, echoed in the distance, drawing Peters attention back towards her window.
"Sounds like they are enjoying themselves out there..." Doreah said with he had no doubt was to be a saddened expression upon her face "I've always loved weddings."
"Yeah... real fun affairs' those." Peter said as he glanced at the window, the sounds of drums beating in the distance along with the cries of what had to be a hundred of Dothraki screamers "Though it's a Dothraki wedding. Not sure if one can really enjoy that unless you are one."
He couldn't imagine Dany was having a great time.
It still boggled his mind that Dany was to marry a Dothraki Khal, that the wedding had, according to Lord Illyrio who had visited Peter only hours ago, been planned for months. At least Peter now knew what was discussed at all of those privates dinners and meals Dany and her brother were invited to, what it was that seemed to be bothering his friend for some time now. Peter didn't know whether to feel angry that Dany kept this all from him, or terrified that he may very well never see her again, Dothraki were always on the move and Peter was certain he wouldn't be welcomed or wanted by the roaming bans of marauders.
He was very much a city boy at heart.
"Have you ever been to a Dothraki wedding, Doreah?" Peter asked.
Doreah's soft chuckles could just barely be heard as another series or horns and yells could be heard "They aren't so bad... least the fucking is great."
Peter hummed at this before he reached down for a small pebble sitting next to him and threw it towards the opposite wall and watched it bounce off the grime ridden surface "Don't know, I'm here and I'm feeling plenty more fucked then they are at the moment."
Doreah flinched at this "I'm... I'm sorry. I- I don't know what came over me that night. Normally Lord Viserys is more then enough to-"
"It's fine." Peter interrupted her with a sigh as he pushed himself up from the wall and began to pace his cell "It'll be a funny story to tell my grandchildren one day. How in a single night I went from dining with Daenerys Stormborn herself while overlooking the Narrow Sea and Pentos to finding a-"
"A whore." Doreah interrupted with a unlady like snort.
"A charming friend of her's that seems to be madly in love with me for some odd reason!" Peter said with a annoyed look thrown back at the wall before he resumed his pacing "Toooo being head butted in the after mentioned Daenerys Targaryen's own room before being promptly beaten by her elder brother, Viserys Targaryen, King in Exile of the whatever people, and the second men and whoever the hell else he's supposed to rule over."
Seriously, how could anyone keep track of all of those titles the King of Westeros was supposed to have? Better yet, who in the Seven Hells came up with them in the first place? Someone actually sat down and thought up all those titles and decided they were good enough for a king of seven kingdoms to have and rule over with. Nobility and their titles, a man will grow old and die before he gets to the end of listing off all the titles some lord has for one reason or another, he thinks.
"And now... your here, in a cell, awaiting judgement because of that after mentioned whore." Doreah said in a sad tone.
"Ahh, it's not my first time in a cell." Peter said with a shrug as he examined his surroundings with a bored look "Least I got my own room. Last cell I was in? Half the size of the one I'm in now an had to share it with twelve others, and there was only one bed, three rat nests and a hole ridden bucket overflowing with shit and piss and Gods only knows what else. We had to share the bed."
It was also on a ship.
'Least it doesn't smell like sea water in here.' Peter thought dryly as he let out a sigh and made his way over to the bars and rested his head against it while slipping his arms through and letting them rest on the cool metal "Doreah, I have a question."
"Hmm?" she sounded from her own cell.
"If by some chance, you make it out of here, what will you do first?" Peter asked as he began to lightly bang his head against the steel bars of his cell.
"It depends." she answered.
"On?"
"If it's Lady Daenerys or her brother that has me released." Doreah said.
"If it's Dany?" Peter asked, curious.
"I'll never leave her side again." Doreah answered.
"And if it's his royal majesty, King Viserys?" peter asked with a sarcastic chuckle.
Doreah was silent for a few moments as she mulled over her answer and Peter ceased his head banging, his skull was starting to throb a little and he didn't feel like adding another bruise to his face.
"See if the supposed dragon can be burned by fire." Doreah said after some time.
At this, Peter laughed.
...
The wedding between Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen and Khal Drogo took place in a field not too far from the walls of Pentos. If Dany were to look behind her, she'd be able to make out Magister Illyrio's estate, but to do so would only invoke her brother's anger, and possibly... her new husband's as well.
Khal Drogo was a massive man of muscle and scars, copper colored skin, long black hair fashioned into a braid that reached down to his thighs, symbolizing having never been defeated in combat. To those unfamiliar with the Dothraki, Drogo undoubtedly dampened many a women's lower lips with his roguish and handsome appearance and the way his muscles rippled with each movement. But to Dany, who has seen firsthand the cruelty of the Dothraki, loathed the brute that she was to marry, hated that he would be taking what she wanted her beloved friend to have.
The wedding ceremony began at dawn, just as the sun began to rise in the East and has continued well on into dusk as a sea of Dothraki men, women, children and slaves drank, feasted, fought, fucked and played before Dany and her husband. The Dothraki wore horsehair leggings held by bronze or bone medallion belts, worn leather footwraps, boots or sandals and painted leathers over bare chests. Some vests were tied and some not, allowing their torsos to be bared for all to see if they turned too suddenly or refrained from adjusting it's position on their bodies if they were tussled.
It'd been only an hour into the ceremony and Dany had seen more women's breasts or men's naked chests, sometimes both pressed together, then she'd think any brothel has in the known world.
'And these... people, are to be my own.' Dany thought darkly as she stared at the mass celebration before her with a blank expression, her face lightly painted to cover the bruises her brother left two nights prior when she attempted to give herself to Peter.
The only reason he hadn't done to her what she saw as done to Doreah before she was sent to the dungeons with Peter was thanks to Illyrio's intervention. A Khal would not accept her if her face was beaten bloody he said, the Khal would take it as an insult and kill them all he added. Viserys scoffed and said that when Drogo and his riders were done fucking her raw, she'd look even worse, and still they'll return to her, but relented and refused to see or speak with her for the rest of the day.
Dany had always feared her brother more then she loved him these past few years, but now, after he tried to kill the man she loved, after he brutalized her handmaiden... now she hated him. She hated how slim and weak he looked compared to the drawings of her ancestors, hated how he spoke to her, how he would look at her with that dark lust of his, hated hearing his voice.
'Perhaps I've always hated him. Perhaps that night was what I needed to finally come to terms with that.' Dany thought as she looked down at her brother from the highest level of the dais that was made in preparation for this wedding.
Between them was Khal Drogo's bloodriders, some sort of honor guard she assumed or an equivalent of it for the Dothraki, and below them was Magister Illyrio, an exiled knight from the Seven Kingdoms by the name of Jorah Mormont and her brother. Viserys was dressed in a new black wool tunic with a scarlet red three headed dragon on the chest, his trousers equally black and splendid and shining black boots that were almost as reflective as a mirror-
Dany shook her head before the last thought could finish, the memory of the merchant in the market still lurked at the edge of her mind, and she's since had all mirrors in her room removed. She didn't know why, but she feared that for some reason, she'd one day look upon her reflection and see the images again, or worse, see that merchant, with his black eyes, looking back at her. An unfounded fear perhaps, but it helped her sleep at night knowing she won't see those reflective surfaces for some time, perhaps by then her fear will have been forgotten and shell look back on it with amusement.
'Or perhaps it'll grow worse.' Dany thought as she waved away another platter of food offered to her, cooked venison covered in a legion of roasted peppers and steaming vegetables and fruits.
She was not hungry, in fact she didn't even feel hungry, her mind too preoccupied with the current state of Peter. She knew he was still alive, but she had no idea of what state he was in, whether his injuries' were treated, if he was being given food and water by the dungeon's guards, if he was being mistreated. With so many worrying thoughts in her head, it was a wonder she could even remember to breath at times.
The wedding continued on, the Dothraki continued to celebrate their Khal's marriage, men fought, men died, women were taken like beasts in heat, and gifts ere brought before the Khaleesi. Most of them held little value to her, and she could only assume that went double, no triple, for her husband.
She could only imagine Peter's commentary through all this.
"Huh, Dothraki have a language. I thought they'd just neigh at one another like horses and click their tongues. Think they use hay and carrots and sugar cubes for money?"
"Oh look, a chest of snakes. Not sure what use that'll be, maybe for mice or rats, but you can get a cat for that."
"Ahh a chest filled with jewels, half of which you'll never wear. Especially when your trudging through the wilderness with a bunch of horse men. I'd ask if I could wear them, but I don't think pearl necklaces and ruby rings go well with my complexion. Maybe your brother, he has that... look, to him. You know what I mean, like, he looks like he'd wear women's clothing andjewlery when he thinks no one is around."
Dany had to hold back a snicker as another chest of ruby and emerald encrusted cups was offered to her and her husband before it was taken away and set aside by one of Drogo's bloodriders. The Khal noticed the briefest of smiles tug at her lips but said nothing as they watched Ser Jorah approach with a small stack of books composing of songs and stories of the Seven Kingdoms and placed them at the feet of the Khaleesi.
"Apologies my princess, I know these mayhaps might not rival the gems merchants and princes from all over have offered, but all I could afford." Ser Jorah said with a sad smile.
"Thank you, Ser." Dany said with a genuine smile as she reached down and pulled the books into her lap and saw each book hailed from one of the Seven Kingdoms.
Jorah bowed to the last living Targaryen Princess and backed away as Lord Illyrio gestured for four burly slaves of his to bring forth a great cedar chest bound in bronze. When the heavy chest was set before Dany, she set aside her books and reached out to open it as Lord Illyrio spoke.
"They hail from the Shadow Lands of Far Asshai, though rumor has it they were once a part of your family, my lady." Illyrio said as Dany slowly opened the chest and gazed at what was inside with large, shock filled eyes.
There, nestled perfectly amongst the finest silk sheets she's ever seen, were three large eggs, seemingly carved from stone. The first egg she lifted was undoubtedly the most beautiful of the three, a deep green with burnished bronze flakes that reflected the light no matter which way Dany would turn it. The second egg she touched was more oval in appearance and slimmer, the color of pale cream streaked with gold that reminded her of pearls. The final egg, the largest of the three, was black as obsidian with red ripples and swirls across it's surface, as if a fire burned beneath it's surface.
"Dragon Eggs, perhaps the last three in the known world." Illyrio revealed.
"I..." Dany began before she caught herself and looked towards Illyrio "Thank you, I shall treasure these, always, my lord."
"Consider it a gift... and an apology, my princess." Illyrio said with a small bow as he stepped back and returned to his seat beside Viserys.
Viserys, to her complete and utter lack of surprise, didn't bother rising to give her a gift, he simply glanced back at her with a dark look and returned to his drink. Dany stared at her brother with a blank expression before she carefully set the Dragon Eggs back within the chest which was then set aside by Drogo's bloodriders. They made to grab the chest and move it aside with a sense of speed and reckless care as they had the previous gifts, but a low growl from Dany stopped them and caused Drogo to smirk as he commanded them to handle the chest with more care.
Once the chest was aside, more merchants approached to offer their gifts to both Dany and her husband until a woman with silver hair stepped forward and took Dany's breath away.
She was beautiful, beyond beautiful even, in Dany's eyes, and stood several inches taller then her, perhaps more thanks to her heeled sandals. Her body was concealed in a white gown that looked to be beyond anything the Highborn Ladies of the Seven Kingdoms could ever hope to afford, with large slits running along the sides to allow for the silver haired beauty to use her legs more freely, while the collar of her dress was expanded to show a near scandalous amount of cleavage. Her hair had been styled in ringlet curls, reached down to her waist and was adorned with small diamond rings that caught the light of the setting sun and made it seem as if literal stars were in her hair.
Drogo's brow furrowed as the woman approached while his bloodriders rested their hands on the handles of their arakh. Dany was confused by such a reaction from her husband and his men, if anything she expected them to be stricken with desire at the sight of this woman.
"Silver Sablinova, leader of the Wild Pack, Khaleesi." the silver haired woman said with a curtsy.
Dany's eyes widened at the perfect Valyrian spoken, even SHE and her brother's wasn't as flawless as this woman's was!
"G-Greetings Lady Sablinova." Dany responded in High Valyrian, casuing the older woman to grin.
"I see Valyrian is not your first language, my dear." Silver said as her eyes flickered towards Drogo's bloodriders, her own hand drifted towards her waist were a handle to a dagger could be seen.
Silver uttered a series of words in the Dothraki language towards the bloodriders, one of whom, Cohollo she believed his name to be, bristled at the woman's words and made to rise before a single bark of a command from Drogo stopped him and frowned at the mysterious beauty. Dany watched as Drogo uttered several words towards silver who responded in a indifferent tone. The two stared one another down for a moment before Drogo finally nodded and leaned back in his seat and returned his attention towards his bloodriders, throwing what Dany assumed was a jest at Cohollo's expense that the other bloodriders found amusing.
"Your husband's bloodriders do not like me. It seems my reputation has proceeded me." Silver answered Dany's unspoken question "I've informed your husband I mean no harm so long as he keeps his pets in line."
Dany nodded as she saw out of the corner of her eye Illyrio heave a sigh of relief while Ser Jorah looked at Silver with a look that seemed... nervous. Her brother, she saw, gazed at Silver with unapologetic lust.
"By your leave, Khaleesi, may I sit with you?" Silver nodded to the small space beside Dany's seat.
Dany was about to answer 'yes', desperate and eager to speak with someone but stopped and glanced worriedly at Drogo to see his reaction to such a request. The Khal gave Silver one glance and immediately returned to speaking to his bloodriders laughing about some crude joke that was undoubtedly made at the Lady Silver's expense. Seeing no signs of dismissal, and having not heard him refuse, Dany turned back towards Silver and nodded and gestured towards the space beside her.
"I thank you, Khaleesi." Silver bowed a she made her way further up the dais, passing the bloodriders without a second glance, earning a few scowls from them, mainly Cohollo, and took a seat beside Dany.
"I can have someone fetch you a pillow to sit on." Dany offered as she looked for a servant to call over and request a cushion for the silver haired beauty.
"No need, I've sat in worse places." Silver said with a dry chuckle as she adjusted the fabric of her gown and allowed her legs to stretch out before crossing them at her ankles.
Dany's eyes fell towards the shapely limbs and felt her face reddened at the lean muscle on display.
"I-If that is what you wish." Dany stammered as she tore her gaze away from Silver's legs and back towards her face, only to look away when she saw the woman looking at her with a knowing smirk.
"No need to feel embarrassed, Khaleesi." Silver teased as she glanced down at her own legs and ran a single well manicured finger across one of her thighs "I'm flattered you find them attractive. It's usually my ass or tits men and women will stare at."
Dany made no response as she reached down for a untouched cup of wine and quickly drank it's contents, hoping to sooth her nerves. Silver's grin grew as she watched Dany hold back a cough as the wine traveled down her throat before signaling for a nearby slave to fetch her a cup as well.
"My lady, your name, Sablinova, I am not familiar with it, but I recognize it as Valyrian." Dany said as she watched Silver retrieve her cup of wine "Where do you hail from?"
"I was born and raised in Qohor for a time before I traveled to Westeros." Silver answered as she took a sip of her wine. humming at the sweetness of it "After the war, I was sent back to Qohor and made my way around the Free Cities for a time. As for my family name, it's Valyrian, same as yours, and the Velaryons and the Celtigar."
"I did not know that any other families aside from mine and theirs had survived the Doom." Dany said with awe.
Silver chuckled at this and Dany found her heart flutter at the sound "Oh quite a few families did, they just simply died out in the years after."
"Was your family of high standing in the Freehold?" Dany inquired, curious and eager to learn more of her heritage from someone that shared it that wasn't her brother.
"The Sablinova's were never a particularly powerful House. At least, not when it was compared to those of the Dragonlords that yours was a part of." Silver said as she and Daenerys watched another fight break out between to Dothraki riders for the chance to take some comely bronze colored woman like a bitch in heat "My family once tended to the various Dragonroads that once connected the Freehold. We extracted tolls, provided protection to the various trade caravans, kept the roads well maintained and built new ones as more and more land was added."
"Did you family ever try to join the Dragonlord Houses?" Dany asked.
At any point, forty Houses or Families, all of which were ruled by and produced Dragonlords, ruled the Freehold, but only a few had been a part of that nobility since the birth of the ancient empire, to it's destruction. Dany's own family only came into being less then a thousand years ago and never held any true political power compared to the far more ancient houses that predated them by thousands of years.
"They did." Silver nodded with a laugh as she reached out for a new cup of wine when another platter of food had been brought to Dany and Drogo to pick from "Sadly, the Doom destroyed Valyria, along with any hopes of my House obtaining Dragos and the rights to breed and raise them and the Freehold shattered. What was left of my house fled to what was originally considered our seat of power, Qohor, where we stayed over the next few centuries and tried to rebuild what was lost. Never did, and we've been in decline ever since."
"I'm sorry." Dany said with a saddened expression.
Silver shrugged at this "No need, you had no hand it in, and thanks to my grandfather, my House's end has been all but assured."
"What do you mean? Has he beggared your House?" Dany questioned.
Silver laughed at this and looked at Dany with amusement "Worse, before he died he threw everything we had left in to a bed he had made with your father just right before the rebellion began. When he heard your brother took the Stark girl, my grandfather believed he could have me taken as a third wife and 're-introduce pure Valyrian blood' into the Targaryen line when I came of age."
Dany winced at this "I suppose the rebellion ruined those plans."
"In some ways..." Silver nodded as she looked away from Dany with a distant look in her eyes "My lord father was killed by one of the Usurper's close allies, my mother by the Lannisters when they sacked Kings Landing and both my brothers died in that war, one at Summerhall, the other at the Trident. The one at the Trident, Mortimer, had been made a squire to your brother that very morning. He died trying to kill the Usurper after he knocked the Prince down from his horse."
"I-I see... you have my sympathies, my lady." Dany said in a quiet voice "I've lost much as well to that man."
"I heard..." Silver said as she took a sip of her wine before making a face at the contents of her cup and quickly tossed it over her shoulder "Ugh, whoever said the Arbor had the finest wine in the Known world had to be fucking some whore the Redwyne supplied them. Or were being fucked by some Redwyne. Or both."
"It is... an acquired taste, my lady." Dany said as she did her best to ignore the sight of the Dothraki man fucking the Dothraki woman on top of the still twitching corpse of the other dead Dothraki.
Gods, what sort of hell was she being sold into?
Silver snorted at this "Acquired taste she says, clearly girl, you've never enjoyed the fine drinks brewed from the Summer Isles."
"Sorry, but exotic wines from distant lands haven't been a luxury me and my brother could afford until recently." Dany said in a dry tone.
"Well, perhaps you will when you and he return to Westeros." Silver hummed before she snapped her fingers as something occurred to her "Ah yes, your gift, how silly of me to forget it."
"What is it?" Dany said as she glanced down towards where she saw more men and women gathering, largely Dothraki now, with another wave of gifts to bestow her and her husband.
"They aren't here presently, but I've met with Lord Illyrio prior and negotiated their release to me." Silver said as she took a sip of her wine "You'll be receiving them in the morning, before we depart."
Dany's breath hitched as hope began to simmer within her "W-What is it?"
"Your would be paramour and your handmaiden." Silver revealed as she leaned in close towards Dany and spoke in a low tone.
Dany's throat tightened at this "You-"
"No need to thank me." Silver said as she patted Dany's hand with a smile so sweet, Dany felt her heart clench at the sheer beauty that was this woman of ancient Valyrian Nobility "If anything, consider it as a loving gesture between future sisters."
"W-What? Sisters?" Dany said with shock and confusion "What do you mean?"
"I'm to wed your brother and become his future Queen..." Silver said as she turned to glance down at where Viserys sat with a unreadable expression "Assuming the Gods are with him."
Based on the woman's tone, and Dany's own knowledge of her brother, Viserys would need that and more if he wished to have Silver as his bride and mother of his children.
Much more.
...
The Five Stages of Grief were a truly wonderous thing to scholars and those of Learned Men.
Grief, as many would admit, was a natural response to death or loss, a sadly common and at times, brutal occurrence to those of low standing in society. The grieving process has been carefully studied over the centuries and recognized as an opportunity to appropriately mourn the loss of either a person, or thing and with time, heal. The process is best helped when that grief is acknowledged, support is found, and time is allowed for a person to properly grieve and reflect upon their loss and find the strength to persevere.
For some, the process can take days, weeks, months or even years to complete... others, it can all happen within a few minutes.
"I'm not gonna be down here forever, just until Viserys cools off and Dany can sweet talk him into letting me out." Peter said as he paced his cell, nodding at the assurance of his logic "We've known each other for years! He wouldn't abandon someone over something as silly as being in the presence of his sister, late in the evening before she's to be wed."
"I believe you underestimate lady Daenerys's brother ability to be petty and vindictive." Doreah said from her cell.
Peter nodded at this "Yes, maybe, but all this accomplished is showing that the next time I find a woman lounging on my bed, I shouldn't shun her and flee out of fear, but say to the Seven Hells with it all and take her, be damned the consequences! Because if I do that, it'll throw the gods for a loop and ruin their plans to inconvenience me yet again, thus saving me from such a fate as this!"
"..."
"..."
"I don't think that's how that works." Doreah said in a doubtful tone.
Peter's shoulders sagged at this and he turned to approach the window of his cell and sighed as he leaned against the bars and stared out at the slowly darkening sky.
"I'll never know the warmth of the sun again, or the feeling of the wind blowing in my face." Peter said as he stared out towards the dark sea, just barely visible through the equally dark branches of the tree with a despondent expression on his face.
"The sun shines through our cells at dusk and we face the Narrow Sea, I believe we'll still be able to experience those at leas once a day." Doreah supplied.
Peter nodded in agreement before a flash of anger overtook him and he turned from the window, stomped towards the bars of his cell and screamed.
"I DIDN'T ASK FOR HER AFFECTIONS, OR TO FEEL ANY FOR HER! I DIDN'T ASK FOR HER TO RISK HER FUTURE TO SOME HORSE FUCKER AND THAT OF HER BASTARD BROTHER'S LUST FOR A FUCKING CHAIR HALF A WORLD AWAY!" Peter raged as he kicked at the bars of his cell.
"There's... a lot to understand there." Doreah said with some confusion.
With another kick to the bars, Peter screamed as he pulled on his hair for a moment before he staggered back to the wall his and Doreah's cells' shared and fell to his bottom, defeated.
"I'm going to die in here and be forgotten." Peter moaned as he brought his legs up and buried his head in between his knees and rocked back and forth, accepting that his life was well and truly over.
"I won't forget you." Doreah said with a weak, uneasy laugh.
"You don't count, you'll be forgotten and left to die with me!" Peter cried as he uncurled from his ball and laid out on the floor and stared up at the ceiling of his cell.
He could try and see if Illyrio would be willing to let him out once the wedding was done and over with, wherever Dany is taken by her husband, Viserys was bound to go with her. Of course, there's also the possibility that Peter WON'T be released because Viserys will stay with the Magister... and if Dany's not around, the exiled King might very well be willing to finally rid himself of Peter once and for all.
'Illyrio wouldn't let that happen, right? I mean he seemed really interested in the designs I had for Pentos's ships and I doubt the other magisters would be fine with him killing the one person, readily available, that can make sure their made properly.' Peter thought with a frown.
It was getting late, he noticed, the sun had finally set and the sky was turning from a purple, orange, red and yellow, to a dark blur and soon black. By this point, Dany was likely married and... consummating her marriage with her new husband. Peter shook his head violently at this before the thought could go any farther then it already had and instead focused on his neighbor, hoping she could distract him from what was happening outside his cell.
Hopefully.
"Doreah, you ever been to the Seven Kingdoms before?" Peter called out for the only other person in this dungeon, alive at any rate.
Several moments of silence ticked by, casuing Peter to quirk a brow at this and prop himself up with his elbows and stare at the wall that sat between their cells.
"Uh, Doreah? You still awake over there?" he called out, a little louder.
She couldn't have fallen asleep already, it'd only been a few minutes and last he heard, she sounded wide awake, same as him. And now that he thinks about it, it was rather... quiet, too quiet he thinks. Earlier he could hear the rustling of leaves from the tree outside his window and the distant drums and shouting of the Dothraki wedding, but now, now it was silent as the grave.
"Doreah!" Peter said as he slowly climbed to his feet and approached the bars of his cell closest to the wall he shared with the former pleasure slave's.
Peter hadn't even made it within three steps of the bars before a man suddenly appeared, his head shaved and dressed in clothes so plain, he couldn't even bother to note them other then that they were simply there.
"Uhh, who are you?" Peter said with uncertainty as he took several steps back in response to the mysterious man's sudden appearance, he hadn't heard anyone enter the dungeon and even then, he assumed Illyrio had barred anyone aside from himself from coming down here.
And this man wasn't one of Lord Illyrio's guards, that was for certain.
It's possible the man was lost... like really lost, but somehow Peter doubted that.
"Just a humble mirror merchant m'lord." the man said with a friendly enough grin as he leaned against the bars "Came for the wedding. Haven't been to one in a while and I have to say, it's mounting up to be a better one then the last one I went to."
"I'm... I'm not a lord, uh, my lord." Peter said with a frown as he glanced in the direction the man appeared from "How'd you get down here? You didn't come from the direction the door is, and I know for a fact no one's entered this place since I've been awake. And umm, you don't strike me as the kind of person Illyrio's guards would just let in on a whim."
"True, but for a man such as myself, slipping into dungeons like this is mere child's play." the man chuckled as he rapped his knuckles against the steel bars "Hmm, quality metal these bars, not that rusted iron one would find in the Red Keep. Good man, Illyrio. Nice to see he's not skimping out when it comes to his purchases."
"Uh yeah." Peter said, still uncomfortable to be speaking to a obvious trespasser, and more then a little worried "I'm sorry, but who are you exactly? Yeah, your a mirror merchant or something like that, but WHO are YOU?"
The man was silent for a moment as he looked at Peter with a thoughtful look and shrugged "Nothing you need to worry about, at least not now. Just take my word for it, I'm a merchant with a mysterious set of skills that make him... different, from your common man and leave it at that. You'll sleep easier at night."
Peter nodded at this before shaking his head "Yeah, that's not helping settle my nerves. If anything, the lack of an answer is just worrying me more."
"Suit yourself." the merchant shrugged as he leaned back to peer into Doreah's cell and shook his head in pity "Tsk, tsk, tsk, that little boy king out there really did a number on this fine beauty."
Peter felt his mouth dry at this "How uh, how does she look? She told me that... well she said she was fine and has had worse, but..."
"Well she's got all her teeth from the looks of it and her eyes, at least I think, their closed at the moment, but I don't see signs of scarring or any of them being forcibly removed from her sockets, so I say she's looking fairly pleasant compared to what could've happened." the merchant shrugged before he turned away from Doreah's cell and refocused his gaze on Peter "But enough about her, she's not why I'm here at the moment."
"Then why are you here?" Peter asked as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other nervously.
Gods he hoped this wasn't some lunatic looking to have some 'fun' with someone locked up in a cell. Personally Peter's never seen such a thing happen, but he's heard stories of wealthy merchants and lords who, for a price, allow society's less then desirable to... play, with incarcerated individuals. Illyrio didn't strike him as the kind of man to allow such a thing under his roof, but maybe this man made him an offer to lucrative to refuse.
"Why, I'm here for you of course!" the man grinned, though something about the smile seemed... off.
Like it wasn't natural for this man to make.
"That's not making me feel any better." Peter gulped.
"Well, rest assure my friend, I mean you no harm." the man said as he held his hand up while the other rested over his heart "I swear it."
"Hmm, I wonder how many people heard that before they were harmed by someone that swore they wouldn't hard them." Peter said.
The merchant grinned at this "Quite a few really, but in this case, I'm genuine. No, I'm not here to hurt you, I'm here with a rather lucrative deal if I do say so myself."
"If it's a mirror, I'm afraid I'll have to decline." Peter said dryly as he gestured around his cell "Not much use for one down here, and I don't fancy seeing myself waste away either."
"Oh I doubt that very much friend, a mirror would certainly brighten this dreary place up." the merchant cackled before he settled down and his expression sobered "No, what I have to offer you is a bit more... practical."
"Is it new blankets?" Peter threw a thumb over his shoulder towards where his bed laid.
"No."
"A chamber put not filled with a few holes in it?"
"No."
"A book to read to help me past the time?"
"Regrettably, no, I sold the last one not too long ago." the merchant said with a dejected sigh before he grinned "I offer you... power!"
"Power?" Peter repeated with a raised brow.
"Yes." the man nodded.
"Your saying you can give me power?" Peter said with a snort of disbelief as he crossed his arms "Are we talking literal or metaphorically?"
The merchant chuckled at this "Oh, it's quite literal, I assure you."
Peter and the man stared at one another for a moment before the former relented and sighed "Fine, let's see this 'power' you wish to offer ME of all people."
"Wonderful, absolutely wonderful..." he sad as he reached for something in his pocket before slipping his hand through the bars and towards Peter "Here, take this and look into it."
Peter frowned and looked down at the man's hand to see what was being offered to him.
A small circular mirror with a simple bronze frame, it's glass surface eerily clean and without flaw and perfectly reflecting everything around it.
"Uhh, what am I supposed to be looking at?" Peter said with confusion as he took the small circle of reflective glass and examined it "Ohhh, is this supposed to be a sorta metaphor? Like, I look at my reflection and see my true self or the power I've always had within me or something?"
"Just look at it my boy, and you'll see." the man said, his entire body still, his unblinking gaze on Peter with a haunting intensity "You'll see the power that can be yours if you just..."
Peter stared at the man for a moment, waiting for him to continue before saying "Just... what?"
"Reach for it." the man stated plainly.
Peter hummed at this before he shook his head and looked down at the mirror, wondering what it was he was supposed to reach out for-.
...
Peter blinked as he looked around, he wasn't in his cell anymore, or anywhere he recognized for that matter. The floor beneath him felt like sand, but it was cold, colder then ice it seemed. Above him, the sky was black, not a single star in sight, as if they were all ripped down, leaving a dark empty void in their place. The air was cold, unbearably cold actually, casuing him to shiver as he looked around for any signs of either light or heat, preferably both before he saw something odd less then half a dozen meters away.
It was a man, at least Peter assumed it was a man, sitting on his knees naked, hunched over, hugging himself, with long pale white hair hanging over his face and polling in front of his knees. The man looked like some kind of the beggar, his skin looked dry and scarred and he was clearly malnourished, he could make out far more detail of the man's spine on his back then he thought should be possible for someone still alive.
Nervously, Peter approached the hunched figure "Uh, hello?"
The man did not stir as Peter slowly approached him, calling out to him to see if he'd respond. If it wasn't for the ever so slight rising of the man's back indicating he was breathing, Peter would've assumed he was dead.
"Hello...?" Peter said as he reached the man and cautiously reached out towards his hunched over form before a thin, gangly hand lashed out and caught his in a iron like grip.
Peter yelped in surprise and tried to tear his hand free of the man's grip before his other hand reached up and seized peter just below the elbow and yanked him forward. The man's head raised and his long, pale white hair parted enough for peter to see his face, impossibly ancient and old, winkled and dry, but his eyes burned like boiling blood, filled with a malevolence he didn't think possible to exist. The man's mouth opened, or rather it tore as he parted his jaws to reveal half rotted, chipped, black and yellow teeth, his breath was that of decay.
"L-Let me go!" Peter yelled as he tried to pry the old man's hands off his arm before the man suddenly leaned forward and sank his teeth into peter's wrist, his broken, teeth tearing into the skin and flesh.
Peter screamed as the man's teeth sank deeper and deeper into his wrist before suddenly the old man's head was pulled back by an unseen force, casuing him to let go of Peter's arm as he hissed and growled at whatever had grabbed him. Peter stumbled back, gripping his bleeding wrist as the old man frantically tried to turn his head to bite whatever it was holding him back, allowing Peter to see a strange black, inky like substance seemingly painted across his chest.
It looked to be in the shape of... a spider.
...
Peter stumbled back with a shuddering breath, now back in the cell, nearly tripping over his own feet until his back slammed into the wall behind him, casuing him to drop the mirror, it's glass shattering upon impact with the floor.
"What the fuck was that?" Peter whispered as he stared at the broken pieces of glass with wide, horror filled eyes.
He could see his face's reflections in the shards, it had lost all color to it and he'd since broken out into a cold sweat. His wrist burned, and Peter looked to see the bite mark was there still, the skin torn and blood seeping out and something that looked like tar slowly crawling across it all.
"Oh no one of importance. At least, not anymore." the merchant grinned, his eyes as black as the void "He thought to try and swindle me not too long ago, and as a result, I decided he needed to spend some time by himself, thinking about what he did. He's not particularly fond of guests, as you've experienced."
The merchant nodded towards Peter's injured wrist.
"What the hell did he do to me?" Peter demanded as he looked up towards the man only to see he was gone!
Before Peter could say or do anything, the tar on his wrist suddenly hissed, drawing his eyes back towards it. The tar seemed to have gathered in the center of his bite mark, small tendrils hesitantly reaching out towards the bloodied teeth holes in his skin before they stabbed into the bleeding wounds. Peter watched in dread filled silence as the black tar like substance slowly crept into his wrist, the once blue veins darkening like ink and becoming more pronounced as tar began to travel up his arm, the skin becoming pale as unbearable stinging sensation beginning to spread from the tips of his fingers, all the way to his shoulder..
"Ohh that's not good." Peter whispered as he felt the stinging sensation begin to spread from his arm, to his chest, intensifying threefold.
Not good at all.
...
And done.
Next chapter, Freedom... with a price.
answers to reviewers' questions or statements:
rafalfonso2001: Peter wasn't the only one to take L's in that chapter, nor will they be the last for any of them, or the worse.
gontheone: To an extant it is Dany's fault, she's well aware of the consequences of what she was doing, she just simply hoped that for once, things would go her way without issue. True, Illyrio could've done more or set his foot down, but he needs to play things carefully, there's a lot of moving parts in play at the moment and there can be no room for error. Oh Peter will be getting his power very soon.
Guest: So Peter getting beat by Visreys, a man who has for years bullied Peter and threatened him a bad look for Peter? What about Dany? She's been bullied, beaten and intimidated into submission even longer then him, yet you aren't saying anything about that. Is there a significant difference between Peter and Dany? Also how is Peter a cuck for not being able to stop Drogo from raping Dany on her wedding night? You do realize he's going to be in a cell, right? I don't think you actually know what the word cuck really means, your just using it because you've heard it used somewhere as an insult and think it'll still apply here. I don't think you paid attention to Dany and the other being's conversation, else you'd know why it'd feel insulted by Dany in the first place.
lord web of life of destiny: Very low expectations. Lot of comics start off great... then once the writers feel enough people are into it, it all goes down hill.
Anime007: I've seen the anime.