Thank you for the reviews on the previous chapter, Princess Rosalind of Underland and jacobssibling. As promised, here is the next chapter.
Haha agree on Brienne knowing nothing. I just had to add that in there because we know Brienne probably was trying to turn Jaime even more against Cersei during her weeks in Winterfell with him.
And he was about to call out Cersei - but luckily he only got to the first syllable so anyone who heard would have thought he was calling Ser!
Its just a normal headache, brought about by the stress, sorry if I've mentioned it too much, Just trying to highlight how different things are now and that they have to deal with this sort of thing when before servants would be around to ease any sickness or troubles.
"What a waste of time," said Cersei, annoyed.
"It wouldn't have been if you didn't have to have a carriage fit for a royal family," replied Jaime
"Its not my fault he only had puny pathetic carriages," Cersei said, briskly walking away from the wagon masters.
"Well, the stagecoach may arrive soon. Should we take that across town?" Jaime replied. He sighed heavily, and she could tell he was annoyed with her, which did nothing to improve her mood.
"You seem to have forgotten that this stagecoach comes by only in the mornings and evenings. All of our purchases are back at the inn and this night is the last of the nights we've paid," she retorted.
"Well, I'm sure we could make it back before the afternoon check-out time," shrugged Jaime. He glanced away from her briefly and tugged her dress sleeve, "Cersei, there it is! We're just in time."
Cersei turned to look at a large wagon, presumably the stagecoach, several feet ahead of them. "I don't want-" Her face contorted in terror as a bell began to chime. She clenched her teeth and bit down on her tongue so hard it drew blood.
She was watching from her window in the Red Keep as the dragon flew straight towards her. Was it….? No. It couldn't be heading to attack her. Not now that the bells were ringing. Perhaps the Targaryen bitch was simply being foolish and showing her might. If so the scorpions would have the dragon dead while it idled and that self-proclaimed Queen would be captured in the midst of announcing all of her precious titles.
Taking a sip of her wine as she watched as it advanced. If Euron were here he'd say it was a glorious sight, and she couldn't disagree with that; though she hoped nobody useful to her had perished in this catastrophe.
A much more glorious sight would be seeing one of her scorpions hit its target and the usurper fall to her death, or better yet survive with horrific injuries.
She had just set her glass down when she saw the dragon breathe fire once again, causing a building off in the distance to fall. Fuck! This wasn't supposed to happen. Her men had surrendered! Daenerys was supposed to stop now. Why wasn't she stopping? Was the Targaryen truly as mad as her father? Did she not care that the surrender bells were ringing?
Another nearby building tumbled. There was smoke, fire, and hordes of people running. Fear paralyzed her as she continued to watch her city fall.
Qyburn approached her, and she was unable to stop the tears that fell as he confirmed how dire things were. With the gates breached she knew it wouldn't be long until the unsullied found her and brought her to that Dragon spawn. She couldn't let that happen. She must escape; if not for her sake then the babe inside her.
She took the hand Qyburn offered and he led her away. Some nearby guards followed them. She could feel the fabric of her gown weighing her down and was relieved that she'd removed her armor before the attack. She could feel Qyburn's normally cold, clammy hand, now sweaty in hers. She could smell the ash, its stench so strong she could even taste it. She could hear the sounds of stone, wood, and glass falling, and the bells ringing incessantly.
A flood of memories overtook Jaime. The last bell he had heard, he'd been in Kingstanding, intent on being a true knight, rescuing Cersei, and surrendering the city.
He could recall the screams of terror and the frequent demands to "ring the bells!" from nearby smallfolk. People were dying slow, agonizing deaths, trapped under rubble; or being burnt alive and there was nothing he could do.
He'd never felt such relief as he had when the welcoming sound of the surrender bell had started ringing. The screams hadn't stopped, but he'd thought that understandable. After all, even though the assault on the city had surely ceased it was still pure chaos. There were still dying people, mothers separated from children, husbands from wives; it made sense that the screaming wouldn't cease.
It had not been until some time later when he'd watched from a distance as a building was just set aflame that he'd realized Daenerys had not stopped her attack. Why hadn't she stopped?
He felt something bump against him, nearly causing him to lose his footing and snapping him out of his thoughts. "Fuck off and watch where you're going," he exploded, turning to see a young man mumbling an apology.
Letting out a stream of foul words he turned towards Cersei to make sure she was alright. She stood against the building, unmoving, an expression of fear etched on her beautiful features. Upon further inspection, it appeared that she had vomited.
Gently he grabbed Cersei's hand and squeezed while softly saying her name. Her unfocused eyes shifted to focus on him.
"Jaime! We have to go now! Hurry!"
He could hear the stagecoach starting to ride away but he knew she wasn't talking about that. When the bell had sounded he had found himself flooded with memories, but thankfully they had not overtaken him. From the looks of it, Cersei had not been so lucky. He'd had similar experiences himself, mainly in regards to losing his sword hand, or Myrcella's death. The first time it had happened had been just after leaving Harrenhall. Brienne had made camp for the night and when he'd seen her cut into the deer he'd found himself transported back to Locke's camp, reliving the pain and agony of his sword hand being severed.
"We're fine. We're here. In Pentos," he explained calmly.
"I...aye, of course," Cersei stated. She stumbled, and Jaime could tell she was desperately trying to regain her composure.
"Do you want to buy a wagon? We could even exchange it later just as you'd like," he said.
"I think I'd rather head back to the inn," she replied to his surprise.
He squeezed her hand in comfort. "Are you sure? We walked all this way."
"I'm not feeling quite right. It was just as though I wasn't here anymore. I was back there watching as..." she trailed off.
"I've had that too. Not with this, but with other things."
"Well. I've certainly never had such a thing happen before," she replied. She kept hold of his hand, tugging it and she turned towards the direction they had come from. It seemed her mind was set on going back to the inn.
"I think it's the body's way of coping with tragedy," he said, falling into step beside her.
She sneered. "It seems more like some foul curse to me."
"I can assure you it's not. After my hand was severed I experienced several such experiences."
She cocked an eyebrow. "So this may happen again?"
"I hope not, but yes, it could."
"But I lost all my children! I never had to relive any of their deaths. That was far more tragic than this!"
"I think fear and shock play more of a role in it than anything else."
"That can't be right! I've had fear every day since Joffrey died. I'd be reliving events every day if that were the cause!" She screamed so loud that a few people turned to look, but only he noticed. He gave them a death stare before turning his attention back towards Cersei, thankful that nobody was paying them any mind anymore he said, "I think it's a different kind of fear than the persistent worrying you have always dealt with. It's hard to explain why it happens. It's a more common thing among soldiers and a gut reaction."
She wrestled her hand free of his and turned towards him in anger. "You speak as though soldiers of all people have dealt with more than I? Need I remind you of that prophecy the witch gave me? And need I further remind you, all of it came to pass!?"
"I was told It's not simply loss or sorrow that causes it, but intense emotions of shock and terror," he said.
She calmed some as she pondered what he said. "Terror, well, I suppose that would be more fitting. That day and when Joffrey died were the only two times I can say with certainty that I felt true terror."
"What about..." he trailed off, realizing it would just cause her more pain if he mentioned Myrcella or Tommen.
She knew what he had been about to ask and answered anyway, "About Myrcella and Tommen? Both were gone before I could even fear for them, let alone feel terror. With Myrcella, I knew once your face came into view. Before I even saw the tarp over where her body lay, I knew. By then, it was too late to fear. The worst had already happened. As for Tommen, well, I never knew there was anything to fear. I never thought he would..." she trailed off. Even after all this time, it seemed she still found herself unable to voice how Tommen had died. She had only ever referred to it as a betrayal, and even that had only been in the immediate aftermath following his death.
She seemed like she might be somewhat open to discussing Tommen now and he felt the urge to ask, "How do you feel about Tommen now?"
"I...I don't know anymore. He was my last remaining child and he chose to leave me. He had to know what it would do to me!"
"Do you have any regrets?" he asked, fearing the answer.
"No!" she insisted.
"Really? None at all?" he asked, unable to mask the disapproval in his voice.
"None," she replied coldly.
They walked in silence for not even a moment. He tried to distract himself by looking in the windows of the shops they passed. When that failed to work he busied himself by examining the people around them. A few moments passed before he glanced over to see tears cascading down her beautiful face.
"Cersei?" he said quietly.
"I should have known. No, I did know he was smitten with her. I just didn't realize how deep it ran. I should have had him under guard for some time after. I shouldn't have left him alone. If I'd been with him. Or if I'd had him under guard in a windowless room as I should have it wouldn't have happened. I do not regret killing that smirking bitch, but I do regret my actions thereafter. So it's my fault he's dead." Her voice had broken more with each word and she paused, stammering out the rest in between sobs. "Is that what you wanted to hear? Because it's the truth."
All of his attention was focused on her now as he grabbed her hand and squeezed in comfort. Cersei may have had some blame in Joffrey's death and him in Myrcella's, but Tommen's death was on both of them. "I...I'm sorry. It was mine too. I should have never gone to Riverrun. I failed him too. You may not have realized how deep his affections ran, but I did. I knew he loved her as I love you. He simply couldn't bear to live while she was dead. Were it up to me, I perhaps would have gotten my revenge first. I would have made them suffer before joining you in eternal slumber, but Tommen wasn't like me. Tommen didn't have a vengeful bone in his body."
"To be honest, I'd always thought only a Lannister could truly love a Lannister," Cersei stated.
"What were you hoping for then? To marry him to Myrcella?" He asked.
A large family with several small children passed by and Cersei sidestepped to avoid them. "Of course not! I thought maybe a cousin or something!"
"Really? Because I'd thought of it. Marrying Myrcella to Tommen would've been the perfect precedent for us to later get married," said Jaime.
"You're mad," Cersei replied, smiling despite it. "Besides, Myrcella and Tommen weren't like us."
"Well, your statement isn't entirely false. Only a Lannister can truly love a Lannister. What a perfect explanation for why father never remarried," he said..
"He did truly love mother. But I think he loved his legacy more than anything. I'd always thought the reason he didn't remarry was that he feared he would have another tiny twisted creature."
"That's a cold jest! Tyrion brought us back...I thought..."
"I'm not being cold or cruel! I truly thought that was why! I suppose I'll be fair though. He had to have known about us as well. Two of his children fucking each other and the other an imp? I doubt he wanted to take his chances with a fourth!"
"Well, I suppose we'll never know."
They were in front of the carpenter's shop that they had passed earlier before Cersei broke the silence, "Jaime, who do you thank rang the bell?"
He shrugged nonchalantly "I suppose one of your soldiers decided to take matters into their own hands."
"Really? Because I'm not so sure about that. Perhaps the Golden company did but I had another theory."
"Why are you so sure it was them and not one of the soldiers from the Lannister army?" The Lannister army consisted of soldiers loyal to the Lannisters but had also absorbed some soldiers of Robert Baratheon's army after his terribly tragic death.
She looked at him pointedly. "Because the least loyal of my soldiers weren't even in King's Landing."
"Sorry..." he stammered awkwardly.
"You aren't. You were relieved when they rode after you when your treason was announced," she said.
"Perhaps so. But only because it would give us greater chances of defeating the dead. Now tell me what is this theory you have? If you think I-"
"No. Not you. Qyburn."
"Qyburn? You think he gave the order to ring the bells?" Jaime asked, surprised.
"Aye. Not to betray me. He would never. But to protect me. He may have done the same regarding my pregnancy. At least at first."
He turned to look at her, studying her face closely as he asked his next question. "So you admit that you are not as far along as you originally claimed?"
"I admit nothing! I simply don't know. I hadn't had a moonblood in two months when he told me of my pregnancy!"
"Would you have ordered the bell to be rung eventually?" he asked, changing the subject.
"I honestly don't know. I think she was mad and wouldn't have stopped either way. But I was relieved to hear them ring. Soldier, or Qyburn, it would be one betrayal I wouldn't have punished."
They walked in silence for a moment and were passing the shop earlier where Cersei had bought the hair dye when Jaime asked a question that had been on his mind for some time. "Do you feel at all bad for all of the innocents who perished in the streets of Kings Landing?"
"Innocents? Is anybody truly innocent? Those people that you call innocents laughed and spat on me while I was paraded naked through the streets."
"You know what I mean!"
"Any of the smallfolk worthy of life had enough sense to get inside the Red Keep before the gates closed."
"Maybe some of them tried their best yet just couldn't make it in time," he stated, remembering how he'd watched as the doors had shut.
"Then they must not have taken the threat as seriously as they should have."
He bit back a cutting remark about how she herself hadn't taken it as seriously until it was far too late. "I actually watched as the gates closed. I was mere feet from entering."
Cersei's face registered surprise and she looked apologetic. "Well, I couldn't have known that. But still, if you had never left..."
"Why were you letting the smallfolk in? That doesn't seem like something you would do," He asked, genuinely curious.
"It was a strategy. I was under the assumption that she would not attack the Red Keep while it housed innocents. I was also certain that if she did launch an assault of the Red Keep our scorpions would shoot her down before she could do much damage."
"Did you care whether she killed them or not?" He asked.
She looked at him as though he had three heads. "Of course I did! What point is there in ruling when there is no one to rule over?!"
"Oh, there were plenty of people outside the gates, trust me," said Jaime. He remembered all too well the faces of the men and women he had passed, most frantic, some gathering children and some fleeing empty-handed.
"Plenty of stupid people. The smartest of the smallfolk, the best of my subjects, were inside the Red Keep," said Cersei, sounding confident that those who truly deserved to survive, would in fact have, were it not for the madness of the Targaryen girl.
He eyed her doubtfully. "Are you sure it wasn't just the ones who lived closest to the Red Keep? They would have had quite the advantage."
"I..." she trailed off, unable to come up with a good reply. "Why do you care so much?"
"I don't. Not really. Just making conversation. Did you know I was supposed to ring the bell? I promised Tyrion."
"Well, I suppose it's best that one of my men beat you to it. We may well have died apart otherwise," Cersei said.
"No."
"What do you mean no?"
"I...I had no intention of ringing it. Oh, I did when I made that promise to Tyrion. But when I saw how the streets were I knew I'd never make it to you in time if I tried for the bell first."
"And here I thought you cared about the innocents," Cersei replied, unable to stop from smirking triumphantly.
He rolled his eyes. "How exactly would I of all people have gotten to the bell? If I recall correctly you had a price on my head. I was trying to stay inconspicuous."
She scoffed. "You cannot blame your lack of heroism on me! Given what was going on I doubt my men would have noticed you!"
"I'm just explaining. Besides that, I figured someone else would surely disobey you and ring it. I even thought for a brief moment that you might give the order".
"Well, it matters not. Once she was on that dragon she wasn't stopping for anything. I suppose she just went mad, like her father," said Cersei.
"Perhaps. But I wonder if..." he trailed off.
"Wonder what? Are you blaming me for this?"
"Haven't you wondered, if you hadn't have killed one of her dragons, and Missandei, if she might not have gone mad?"
"No," replied Cersei without hesitation.
"No? Please do explain."
"No, because she still went after all the as you so love to call them, innocents. If it were the things that I did, why would she not just attack the Red Keep? That should tell you all you need to know."
"Well, I suppose that is a good point," he said, not wanting to argue the matter. Though he still couldn't help but wonder if perhaps Cersei's actions had played a role. Perhaps even the cold treatment he had witnessed from the Northerners towards Daenerys had played a role as well.
"Of course it is. And look, we're almost back to the inn now."