Chapter 40: Tywin
Tywin Lannister entered the solar of the Lord of Riverrun-said Lord was currently abed, dying-Myrcella, Robb, Ser Edmure and a whole host of others including Uncle Jaime and Ser Barristan and Ser Arys, watched as the man entered. He was dressed in red and gold, his golden hair cut short, accompanied by Uncle Kevan and nobody else.
The man stopped before them. Myrcella had ensured that she and Robb were seated in the two grandest chairs that Riverrun had had to offer-even though Ser Edmure had huffed about it. Grandfather and Uncle Kevan both bowed low.
"Your Graces." They said together.
"Lord Tywin, Ser Kevan." Robb said, Myrcella had told him that in this meeting he would need to take the lead. Her grandfather wouldn't respect him otherwise. "Be seated." The two men took their seats opposite them.
Once they were seated, Robb spoke once more. "We thank you for coming to Riverrun, we understand that there will be questions and concerns and we hope to address them over the course of this conversation." There was a pause and then Robb turned to her and said. "My dearest wife Myrcella shall begin."
Myrcella nodded and then looked at her grandfather and uncle and said. "I am sure you know now that my father had Lord Eddard write out his last will before he died. In it, he named Robb and I as his heirs, and furthermore, he wanted Lord Eddard to serve as regent until we came of age." Myrcella had found herself wondering about that as of late. Would Lord Eddard truly have waited until they were of age to give them full power?
"He handed a copy of this will to Jon Snow for safekeeping, and when Snow returned to Winterfell with his siblings, he handed that will to Robb. That is how we came to know of this." Myrcella continued. "Once we were informed of my father's decision it was clear that we would need to act. But before anything further could be decided, Joffrey sent word that he had arrested Lord Eddard and wanted Robb to come south to answer for what he claimed was treason."
"Of course, we couldn't just head south without an army and so the banners were called and we marched south. Which is when we learned of what was truly happening in the Riverlands. A battle was fought, Ser Jaime was captured, and then we learned the full truth." Myrcella said, learning that someone like Petyr Baelish was involved had caused all kinds of ruminations. Nobody was sure whether they wanted to speak on it beyond what had been said before.
She finished speaking then and waited. Grandfather didn't say anything immediately, instead he looked between her and Robb, then at Uncle Jaime who was stood behind them. When he turned his attention back to her and Robb, he did that rare thing that he never did, he smiled.
"I am happy to know that the two of you have good heads on your shoulders, Your Graces. It would be a disaster if you were as hot-headed as my fool of a daughter and grandson."
Myrcella blinked; she hadn't expected her grandfather to be that blunt.
"What you have laid out is quite clear and concise, and it shows that you have considered every possible angle." Grandfather continued. "That is good. It shows that you will not be blinded by the big headlines. I admit that I was wrong to consider the Riverlords as acting completely irrationally. They would only have done what they had done if they felt that things were escalating. And such a thing would only have happened had someone been pushing them that way."
Myrcella felt as if she'd been rocked upside down. Had her grandfather just admitted he'd made a mistake?
"Now that I am here, I intend to be of use to you. We will not be fighting anymore battles against you." Grandfather continued, here, he looked at Robb. "Your Grace has clearly shown that you have military smarts. That is good."
Myrcella glanced at Robb and saw him flush a little at the praise.
"But you will both need a keen eye to ensure victory. Cersei will not let things go that easily. And once she learns that I have supported you, then she will definitely try things to remove you at all costs." Grandfather continued.
"Therefore, I shall add a contingent of red cloaks to your guard. They will be loyal to you and to you alone. You also have three of the best swordsmen in the realm serving as your Kingsguard, that is good. You will need to choose more. Once you have your complete seven, you have won half the battle."
Myrcella felt Robb shift and knew he was about to ask a question, so, she grabbed his hand and squeezed. This wasn't the time for asking questions. They needed to get Lord Tywin to say everything they needed him to say first.
As if he'd read her mind, Grandfather obliged. "I know that you may feel that you don't want my help, but I believe that you will benefit from it. I know Cersei, and I know those on the small council. I am also owed a lot of money by the crown, so, my withholding support from Joffrey means they cannot get easy access to loans. With my support I believe that you will be sat on the throne by the year's end."
Myrcella shared a look with Robb who nodded.
As if taking his cue from that, Grandfather, and Uncle Kevan both got up and knelt before them and swore their vows of allegiance. Myrcella could almost hear Joffrey screaming.
It had been a day since Lord Tywin had come and sworn his allegiance to them. A day since the army of the Westerlands had been put at their disposal. Robb would be lying if he said he wasn't slightly intimidated and in awe of the man. This was after all Tywin Lannister, the man who'd torn down the Reynes and Tarbecks when they'd dared challenge the authority of his family. This was the man who'd provided twenty years of peace for the realm as Hand to King Aerys. And this was the man who'd sacked King's Landing and officially ended House Targaryen. He was a legend.
Lord Tywin had asked Robb if they could meet privately, and so, Robb had on an instinct invited the man to the Godswood-might as well have home advantage-and now here he was walking with the man himself.
"What did you wish to speak of?" Robb asked, deciding to get to the heart of the matter quickly.
Lord Tywin didn't respond immediately; indeed, Robb got the impression that the man was looking him over. Robb kept his eyes firmly on the trees before them.
When the man did respond, his words were filled with weight. "I wished to get a better understanding of you, Your Grace. You are after all going to be King of the Seven Kingdoms. You are married to my granddaughter, the Queen. I wished to know who you are."
Robb nodded and looked at the man, he was right, Lord Tywin was looking at him.
"Well, ask away." He said, trying to sound more confident than he perhaps felt.
"Do you intend to let Myrcella do most of the talking as the campaign goes on?" Lord Tywin asked.
"I…it is her claim that we are pushing, therefore it feels right that she lead on that front." Robb answered.
"Robert named you both as his heirs. You have an equal say in what is being done on that front." Lord Tywin said. "And besides, Myrcella is smart, and she is beautiful and those are both assets. But you must remember, in the south, most men think women are there to be looked at, nothing more. They will see her and then look at you and things will get harder for you both."
Robb frowned. "What do you mean?"
Lord Tywin stopped walking, forcing Robb to stop as well. "Queen Rhaenrya left a bad impression on the Seven Kingdoms. She was a tyrant and half mad by the time she took the throne. Rightly or wrongly, that is the impression most men in the south have of a female ruler. But because Robert named you as well as Myrcella as his heir, people will focus on you. And they will not like to see you playing second fiddle to her. They will think you are her puppet."
"But Myrcella is the one with the blood claim, she is the one who was King Robert's daughter!" Robb protested.
"You are the one with the army." Lord Tywin answered. "It was your defeat of my son that prompted me to turn sides."
Robb felt his eyes widen. This was completely contrary to everything he'd ever been taught. This was might makes right. Not doing the honourable thing.
"So, what are you suggesting?" Robb asked.
"That you need to take a more leading role. You need to understand who the players are in the south. You need to know their pressure points and how to exploit them. And you need to change your appearance." Lord Tywin said.
"My appearance?" Robb asked looking down at his clothes.
"Yes." Lord Tywin said. "Grey works for Winterfell, it does not work for King's Landing."
"What will then?" Robb asked.
"Red, gold, purple, the royal colours that the Andals and the First Men both wore before the Targaryens came." Lord Tywin said.
Robb exhaled.
"Do not worry, I will guide you through this, as will Myrcella." Lord Tywin said. Robb nodded, but he felt a pit of dread forming in his stomach.