Bran had awoken. Just as Kaela had prayed for at his mother's behest. The confusion she felt had been evident on her face when the rumours spread around the Red Keep. The ritual she performed shouldn't have worked, not without King's blood. It was only when she found out Bran might have lived, but he would never walk again, did she realise the truth. The Lord of Light was a God. And they rarely showed true mercy. The blood magic had been incomplete; thus Bran's awakening was too. Yet, Kaela still felt uneasy. The image of Lord Baelish's white eyes stirred in her mind, causing every hair on her body to stand on end. She had heard the stories that were passed down the Targaryen line, all the way back to the Dance of Dragons, but she had always believed the stories to be that of myth. But now was it possible that Kaela herself had brought a boy back from the dead? What else in her religion was truth?
The sound of metal hitting oak brought her out of her thoughts, as she glanced across the room to see Arya stabbing the lavish table in front of her with her meat knife. From the tightness of Septa Mordane's lips, she could tell all hell was about to break loose.
"Enough of that, young lady. Eat your food" The Septa chastised, gesturing to the extravagant meal laid out before her.
"I'm practising" Arya mumbled.
"Practicing for what?" Sansa inquired, surprising Kaela, as they were the first words she had said to her sister in days.
"The Prince" Arya announced, as Kaela's mouth went slack, hardly able to believe what she was hearing.
"Arya! " Kaela hissed, storming forward and taking the dull knife from her hand in the blink of an eye.
"He's a liar and a coward and he killed my friend" Arya exclaimed, as Kaela crouched down in front of her Lady.
"We have spoken of this. You cannot speak this way, not where the Prince is concerned" Kaela insisted, her eyes flickering over to two handmaidens in the corner of the room, who she could hear were whispering to each other.
"You're an idiot, Arya. The Hound killed your friend" Sansa pointed out.
"You're a liar. And if you told the truth, Mycah would be alive!" Arya cried, causing her older sister to flinch at her harsh words.
"No, he wouldn't. Because he was just a butcher's boy. And a Prince can bring death to anyone's door. Your sisters. Yours " Kaela insisted.
Arya's eyes stung at Kaela's admission, and more importantly, the disappointed expression she wore on her face. Without another word, Kaela was pulling Arya's chair out from the table, and ushering the young Stark to her room before she could say anything else incriminating.
"What's happened here?" Ned Stark's voice called out, having heard the raised voices from outside the door.
"Arya would rather act like a beast than a lady" Septa Mordane muttered, as Arya was quick to rush out of the room, blinking away the tears in her eyes.
"Her friend was killed. Lady Arya is upset, and rightly so. I will speak to her with your leave, my Lord" Kaela advised, as Ned gave her a curt nod.
Upon entering Arya's bedchambers, she found she had unsheathed her skinny sword, her eyes glittering in the candlelight as she ran her small fingers over the edge of the blade. Arya had a strange fascination with weaponry...and what often followed after it. Kaela reckoned it would lead her to a great deal of trouble in the future.
"And who do you plan to skewer tonight, Little Lady?" Kaela spoke up.
"Joffrey. The Queen. The King...the whole bloody lot of them" Arya retorted, gripping the sword tightly in her hand.
"Ah, so you wish to kill the entire royal family then? It's been done before, of course. The man who sits on the Iron Throne killed the Mad King and every Targaryen he could get his hands on" Kaela went on.
The fool missed a few , she thought to herself.
"Why does father surround himself with them? They're awful! They killed Mycah, and they would have killed Nymeria and Lady too, if they could!" Arya insisted, twisting around to sit down on the trunk at the foot of her bed.
"What would you have had him do, Arya? Challenge the King to a duel in the name of a Butcher's boy? For the life of a wolf? He loves his children, and to protect you, he has to hold his tongue. Something which you need to learn to do. What if the Queen hears how you threatened her son this eve?" Kaela explained.
"Father would protect me" Arya murmured, as Kaela went to sit down beside her, wrapping her arm around the girl's shoulder.
"Your father might not always be around to protect you" Kaela pointed out, watching as Arya's forehead wrinkled at the thought.
"You should apologise to your sister" Kaela advised.
"Why? She is an idiot" Arya huffed, as a soft laugh left Kaela's lips.
"That be as it may, she is still your sister. And apart from your father, perhaps the only person you can trust in this city" Kaela stated.
"But I can trust you, can't I?" Arya suggested, looking up at her with wide eyes.
" Of course. But...neither will I always be here, Arya. I have not wished to bring up such a subject but...I plan to leave King's Landing before the turn of the year" Kaela admitted.
"Why?" Arya asked, cursing the way her eyes started to well up once more.
"I cannot speak of such things with you" Kaela sighed.
"Because I'm too young?" Arya scoffed, with a pout.
"Because I care too much about you to endanger your life in such a way" Kaela told her, pulling Arya's small frame closer to her.
"I wish you were my sister" Arya mumbled, wrapping her arms around Kaela's waist.
"So, do I" Kaela replied, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the top of her head.
They stayed like that for some time before Kaela announced she would need to return to her duties. She was shocked to find Lord Stark standing just outside the door, a sullen expression on his face. With a nervous curtsey, Kaela went to walk past him, when a hand shot out to stop her. Ned closed Arya's door, hoping they would have some privacy for the conversation that was long overdue.
"You have always been a loyal companion to my daughter. For this you have my thanks" Ned announced, as Kaela nodded, once more.
"I am very fond of her, my Lord" Kaela confessed.
"How does she fare after the events on the Kingsroad?" Ned inquired.
"She has a great deal of anger and no way to express it...apart from in threats to her sister" Kaela stated, as Ned ran a hand down his face.
"War was easier than daughters" He murmured, more to himself than her.
"I doubt that " Kaela exclaimed, in a cutting tone, her mind going to her family, as it did almost constantly since she entered through the gates of the city.
Ned regarded her with a strange look for a moment, thinking that her eyes seemed older than her years. Or perhaps, it was something more than that?
"She took up a friendship with the butcher's boy because he was the only one willing to spar with her. She wants to fight, my Lord" Kaela explained.
"Children shouldn't pay mind to such things. Especially young girls" Ned retorted.
"Lady Arya cannot help who she is. Fighting makes her happy. And I very much want to see her happy" Kaela insisted, as Ned pursed his lips.
"Aye. On that we agree" Ned mumbled, as an idea came to his mind.
"Perhaps if she truly wishes to fight...I should find someone suitable to guide her. Who will do so with discretion" Ned went on, taking a step to the side and knocking on his daughter's bedchamber door.
"My Lord, did..." Kaela trailed off, the words coming from her mouth before her brain could catch up.
"Yes?" Ned questioned, twisting back around to face her, a curious expression on his face.
"Never mind, my Lord. It matters not" Kaela exclaimed, turning on her heel and making a speedy exit.
What difference would it make if Ned Stark regretted his actions during the war? If he wished he had stopped his friend from ordering such vile actions? What was done was done . No matter how noble he was, Lord Stark had stood by and allowed Robert to burn the Targaryen line. And that would be his undoing.
Kaela pored over the books laid out in front of her in the library of the Red Keep, her eyes growing heavy as the words seemed to blur together. Her eyes flickered up to the candle beside her, seeing it was little more than a few inches of wax now. She had spent hours trailing over books, trying to find what could cause a man to develop the white eyes she had seen in the days before. But her efforts had turned up nothing. With a sigh, she shut the large book in front of her, leaning back in the stiff wooden chair she had been perched on for hours.
"The library rarely has a caller this late at night" A familiar voice exclaimed, as Kaela turned around to see Tyrion Lannister walking toward her.
"My Lord" Kaela nodded, jumping to her feet and giving the Lannister a curtsey.
"And what book is it that interests you so? The Myths and Legends of Westeros? My, my. Aren't you full of surprises" Tyrion grinned, leaning forward to see what book she had been reading.
"My Lady has a keen mind for such things. I had hoped these books would help me join in her conversations" Kaela murmured; the half-lie.
"And what exactly does a girl of one and ten wish to know about these myths?" Tyrion asked, clearly not believing her.
" White eyes " Kaela responded.
"White eyes? I assume you are speaking of a skinchanger?" Tyrion guessed as Kaela's brows knitted together.
"Or a warg as some like to say. They are people with the ability to enter the mind of an animal and control its actions and perceive the world through their eyes. Not that they truly exist, of course," Tyrion explained.
Her mind spun with hurried thoughts, debating whether it was possible that Lord Baelish was one such person. She found it unlikely. As far as she had heard, wargs were often Northmen. Besides, what creature would Baelish be using while walking through the Red Keep?
"How do you know so much about them?" Kaela inquired, with interest.
"Look at me and tell me what you see" Tyrion said, pulling himself up onto one of the wooden chairs beside her.
"...I see a very smart man" Kaela replied, as Tyrion huffed out a laugh.
" Oh , such flattery. Is that how you've managed to sway my dear brother so easily?" Tyrion grinned.
"I think Ser Jaime enjoys my bluntness" Kaela suggested, causing Tyrion's grin to widen.
"Then amaze me with this skill" Tyrion insisted, waving his hand in the air.
"I see a rich, powerful man. One who is also a dwarf. Someone easily underestimated, and who has been tormented by what he is" Kaela went on, as Tyrion quirked an eyebrow.
"Hmm. If I'd been born a peasant they might've left me out in the woods to die. Alas, I was born a Lannister of Casterly Rock. Things are expected of me. My sister married a King and my repulsive nephew will be King after him. I must do my part for the honour of my house, wouldn't you agree? But how? Well, my brother has his sword and I have my mind. And a mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone. So, I spend most of my days poring over books. And that is why I know so much" Tyrion informed her.
"But you don't believe in such things as skinchangers?" Kaela pushed, making Tyrion scoff.
"My dear, if I believed in everything I read, I wouldn't be a very smart man, now would I?" Tyrion pointed out.
"Did your books ever talk about a skinchanger controlling the mind of a person?" Kaela asked, as Tyrion mulled over her words.
"There are a few mentions. They say the Red Priestess who slit Kiana Targaryen's throat had white eyes at the time" Tyrion stated, watching as Kaela's face instantly paled.
"Your books state another mind caused her hand to wield that blade?" Kiana mumbled, a sick feeling growing in her stomach.
"Perhaps. But such books must be read with a pinch of salt. After all, they suggest that days later the same woman was brought back to life. Writers have a way of dramatizing such events" Tyrion shrugged, dismissively.
Kaela nodded, but still, her stomach churned at the thought. Was it a coincidence that she had brought a person back from the other side and there was a sudden emergence of a skinchanger?
"Fret not, as I said, such things are mere nonsense" Tyrion soothed, thinking that was why she looked so horrified.
"Of course, my Lord. I have learnt in my years it is only men that I truly need to fear" Kaela murmured.
"Present company excluded, I would hope" Tyrion mused, causing Kaela's lips to quirk into a smile.
"Why is it you have not been wed, my Lord?" Kaela inquired, leaving Tyrion taken aback.
"It is a rare thing to render me speechless, but you have succeeded in that feat. I imagine my Lord father would not wish to resign a lady to such a horrible fate" Tyrion shrugged.
"I think a Lady would be quite lucky to be wed to you. She would certainly have more freedom than most" Kaela reasoned.
"Not to mention she would find herself sufficiently pleased in other regards" Tyrion smirked, wiggling his eyebrows, causing Kaela to giggle.
Still tired after her late-night talk with Tyrion, Kaela moved in a haze through the winding corridors of the Red Keep, carrying sheets and silks for Arya's bedchambers, stacked high up to her chin. She could barely see in front of her, and as she rounded the next corner, she found herself colliding with a plump man. The sheets fell in a heap to the ground, as she refrained from rolling her eyes. She was all but ready to scold the man who clearly hadn't been looking where he was going either when she realised who he must have been. Lord Varys . A skilled manipulator who had once sat beside Aerys, whispering in his ear. From the smug look on his face, Kaela feared that perhaps their collision was not accidental.
"Begging your pardon, my Lord" Kaela muttered, falling to her knees to pick up the sheets on the ground.
She frowned as Varys did the same, beginning to fold up the numerous sheets that lay over the dirty floor. He seemed to have little care for the way his golden robes became soiled around his knees, the smirk never leaving his lips.
"I myself was once a slave. Some things one never forgets" Varys exclaimed, pushing himself to his feet, still holding half the messy sheets in his hands.
"Thank you, my Lord" Kaela nodded, not sure what else to say.
"Follow me, my Lady" Varys announced, before whipping around and walking in the opposite direction.
"I...I am no Lady. And I should be getting these sheets—" Kaela began, when Vary's soft voice cut her off.
"That was not a request, I am afraid" Varys retorted, not bothering to turn to check she was following him.
"Yes, my Lord" Kaela gulped, rushing to stay close on his heels.
They walked for some minutes, until they arrived in front of a particular door, which Varys unlocked, and held it open for her. Kaela peered inside, quickly realising it must have been the Spider's bedchambers. She instinctively reached for the dagger hidden beneath her skirts, as she entered the surprisingly tame room, her movement hidden by the sheets she still held in one hand.
"There is no need for weapons, my Lady. I mean you no harm" Varys told her, somehow able to tell her intentions without even looking.
"Why have you brought me here?" Kaela insisted.
"I wanted to get a good look at the last Targaryen" Varys answered, once he had closed his chamber door.
Kaela's eyes widened a fraction, but she showed no other reaction. How was it that so many seemed to know who she was in Kings Landing, whilst none had even been suspicious of her in Winterfell? Her eyes flickered around the room for a moment, looking for anyone else in the room, but it was empty. Nor, did there seem to be any sign of an escape apart from the door Varys stood in front of.
She stiffened as he glided across the room toward her, but just before he reached her, he turned toward his bed. She watched in confusion as he nudged his lavish bed to the side with his hands, revealing stone slabs underneath. Her jaw dropped open as a mechanism was revealed which caused the stone slabs to move, and a hidden staircase was illuminated by a group of torches.
"We should speak of this in a more private setting" Varys insisted, before beginning his descent down the dim steps.
Debating what to do, Kaela reluctantly went to follow him, dropping the sheets she still held onto his bed, and bringing her dagger out in front of him. Varys was smart, but she could still slit his throat before he could lay a hand on her.
"I don't understand the meaning of your words, Lord Varys" Kaela said, meeting him at the bottom of the staircase.
She was amazed to find they were now in a darkened tunnel, which seemed to stretch on as far as her eyes could see. She could hear mumbling from further down in the shadows, causing a shiver to go down her spine.
" Ah , of course, you do not remember me. For you were only a babe at the time. I still remember how your mother wept when I took you from her arms. Such a sad sound" Varys mumbled, watching as Kaela's lips parted in shock.
"My mother?" Kaela frowned.
"Elaena Targaryen. I was the one who swapped you for a handmaiden's babe, you see. You can only imagine my shock when I realised you have returned to Westeros" Varys explained.
"How long have you known?" Kaela inquired, holding her weapon close to her side.
"Since you crossed the Narrow Sea. I found it strange you made your home in Winterfell, but I thought better than to draw attention to you" Varys went on.
"And why exactly would you save me from your new King's clutches?" Kaela pushed.
"I had seen what had become of Aerys. He had fallen victim to madness, and his family was no longer fit to serve the realm. But...I knew that could one day change. I rather liked the thought of having such an important piece of the puzzle of this world far removed" Varys suggested, taking a few steps toward her.
"If that is true, then you could have saved my mother too" Kaela spat out.
"Aerys would not allow her to leave his clutches. I think you know that" Varys exclaimed, as Kaela pursed her lips.
"You've been watching me for some years then?" Kaela asked.
"You can only imagine my disappointment when I heard you had been brought up in the Red Temple of Volantis. I must admit, if I had known it was a Red Priestess who would take you in, I might have left you to burn with your mother" Varys stated, bluntly.
"Perhaps you should have" Kaela huffed, still gripping onto her knife.
"Your family oft made use of these tunnels. Your mother, in particular, I hear" Varys admitted.
"You still have not said why you have brought me here?" Kaela pushed.
"If you keep walking down these tunnels, you will eventually reach the cliffs facing the Narrow Sea. I urge you to go this way and go back to where you belong" Varys told her, as she gave him a look of disbelief.
"You will find this Targaryen is not as easy to get rid of as the last" Kaela exclaimed, with anger.
"You misunderstood me, my Lady. I urge you to find your family. Your cousins. Go to be with your family until the time perhaps comes for one of you to reclaim the Throne" Varys went on.
"I could care less whose sorry arse sits on that abomination" Kaela scoffed, as Varys gave her a disappointed look.
"Do not undo what it cost many a man to keep you alive" Varys warned, and with that, he whipped around to ascend the winding staircase, leaving her alone in the shadows.
Kaela looked upon the decaying stone and rubble before her, as an overwhelming feeling of sadness washed over her. The Red Temple of Kings Landing was now nothing more than a ruin. Left to rot slowly over hundreds of years, as the people of Westeros lost their faith. Nothing was ever the same after the Dance of Dragons, not on that side of the sea. The Red Priestesses' had to flee back to Volantis where that had once come from. Melisandre spoke often of the once great Temple as if she had been there herself, telling her of the fires that could be seen from every window. Cautiously, Kaela began to walk over the jagged rubble, holding onto what was left of the pillars that had once stood so tall to keep her footing. She made her way into what she had imagined had once been a hall, able to make out some of the red stone flooring. She imagined how some of her ancestors had once walked over the same floors she now did.
"Robert wanted the ruin cleared out years ago" A voice exclaimed, from a few metres away.
Kaela found she wasn't too surprised to find Jaime stumbling toward her, no longer wearing his golden cloak, opting instead for simple leather and breeches instead. With his golden hair and chiselled face, he would still easily stand out in a crowd of commoners.
"You're quite good at predicting my next move, aren't you?" Kaela suggested, as he shot her his trademark smirk.
"I have a unique understanding of a Targaryen mind" He murmured, as Kaela gave him a warning look, worried at who might hear his words.
"No one comes here. Not noblemen or the smallfolk. They think this ground to be cursed. When Robert ordered the rubble to be moved, no man would accept his offer. And when he ordered them to do it in the name of their King, those who were foolish to heed his words met tragic ends rather quickly" Jaime explained, leaping across a nearby stone cracked in half to come join her.
"I feel little sympathy for them" Kaela huffed.
"You do not fear the same will happen to you?" Kaela inquired, after a moment.
"I do not believe in your God. Nor in curses" Jaime shrugged, beginning to lead her further into the unstable ruins.
"I performed a blood magic ritual to give life to Bran before we left Winterfell. And now, he is awake" Kaela blurted out, leaving Jaime taken aback.
"Yet, he does not remember what happened to him, I hear?" Jaime said, in a slightly nervous tone.
"It's odd. But they say Kiana Targaryen was quite changed when she returned from the other side. Maybe the same is to happen to Bran" Kaela mused, causing Jaime's jaw to clench uncomfortably.
"Enough talk of cripples and dead things. Why were you speaking to my brother so late one eve?" Jaime pushed, as a soft giggle left Kaela's lips.
"Have I said something to amuse you?" Jaime huffed.
"You almost sound jealous, Ser. And perhaps you should be, your brother is certainly an entertaining man" Kaela teased.
"I trust you did not tell him your truth?" Jaime queried, as she raised an elegant eyebrow.
"Do you think me a fool? Far too many people already know who I am. I plan to add no more to the growing list" Kaela sighed, hopping over another slippery stone.
"Well, you may not have reason to stay in King's Landing for much longer. My sister plots to have Robert play in the Tournament of the Hand. And so many men do fall fatally from their saddle in such competitions" Jaime smirked, as a shadow grew over Kaela's features.
"That death sounds a little too quick for my liking" Kaela muttered.
"Does it truly matter how Robert meets his end, as long as this world is rid of him?" Jaime pointed out.
Choosing not to answer him, Kaela made her way through the shrubbery that had grown over the ruins, into what shelter was left of the Temple. Her mouth went slack when she found a brazier fire in the middle of the rubble, bent out of shape and tilted to one side. What truly shocked her was that the fire was still burning.
" Seven Hells " Jaime gaped, having heard the rumours over the years that a fire had never been extinguished.
"Not quite" Kaela smirked, taking a cautious step forward, looking upwards to find water was slowly seeping down what was left of the stone ceiling.
"Someone must be keeping the flames burning" Jaime suggested.
"You said it yourself, no one comes here. Not anymore" Kaela insisted, approaching the fire, with apt curiosity.
Jaime found a chill settling in under his skin as he heard the wind blowing through the ruins, creating an ominous ambience. It felt like there were a thousand eyes on him, and if he was a man of faith, he might have believed it to be the gaze of the dead. Instinctively, his hand made its way to the hilt of his sword, staying close to Kaela's side.
"Melisandre told me it would be here" Kaela murmured, with wide eyes, continuing to gaze into the flickering fires.
" Melisandre? " Jaime frowned, recognising the name at once.
Kaela could no longer hear his voice as her gaze grew unfocused, finding the flames flickered and changed in front of her eyes. The air thickened all around her, as she felt all the air being sucked from her lungs until there was nothing but smoke for her to inhale. The flames burnt brighter, creating more smoke until it had completely engulfed her form. She stumbled back a step, finding the ruins around her seemed to fade and morph into a new setting. The fire was the only thing that remained, now surrounded by a blacksmith's anvil and swords behind it. Her eyes narrowed as the image of a boy came into view, his hair a dark brown, and eyes a pale blue. His arms glistened with sweat as he struck the sword in front of him with a hammer, bending it to a new shape. She noticed his back seemed to suddenly stiffen, his head snapping up, as their eyes connected. And then...there was nothing but black.
Her knees gave out a moment later, as strong arms grabbed her waist, steadying her before she could fall to the ground. Her breath was coming out in short pants as the smoke that had almost consumed her faded from her vision and she found she was back in the ruins. Her head ached painfully, tension brewing behind her temples as the arms around her gripped onto her hips a little tighter.
"What...what happened?" Kaela exclaimed, turning her head to the side to find it was Jaime who was holding onto her.
"You began to sway, I called out to you, but you did not answer. You looked as if you were about to faint" Jaime informed her, pulling his hands away to land more respectfully on her shoulders.
"I saw...I saw a boy..." Kaela trailed off, closing her eyes as she tried to put his face to memory.
"Where?" Jaime frowned, not understanding her strange words.
"I think my God has work for me" Kaela announced, in a determined tone.