Thank you to Princess Rosalind of Underland for reviewing the previous chapter and thank you to jacobssibling for reviewing more of the previous chapters! :D
The next few chapters are pretty slow paced so I might try to get them all out within a week or 2 of each other since I've felt so motivated by jacobssibling's detailed reviews :)
Though Jaime was saddened by how Cersei chose to deal with their funds, he was also thankful that the problem of their lack of spendable funds had been solved. Finally, he could get a shirt and they could both have a hot meal.
They walked in silence for a few moments until Cersei came to a halt in front of a diner. It was different from the one that they'd had their earlier embarrassing scene in. He stopped and waited for her to say something.
"As humiliating as my current state of dress is, I'm afraid I'm far too hungry to wait any longer to eat," she informed him.
"It won't take that long to get some clothes. We could just-" he began.
"No."
They stared into each other's eyes, both trying to guess what the other was thinking. He decided not to insist. Though he had hoped they'd share their first meal in Pentos together, he couldn't fault her if she didn't want to wait. After all, she was pregnant, and he was concerned not only for her but for the baby as well.
The power was all in Cersei's hands now. She had all the money as well as all their remaining possessions. Would she leave him now, here on the streets of Pentos, dressed in rags with only one shoe? It wouldn't surprise him. He had left her to help the North. He was sure she'd want revenge on him. Not to mention his whole affair with Brienne as well. He had come back to her though, and he had chosen to go with her to Pentos. Surely that had to count for something?
To his surprise, she retrieved some coins from the sack. "I trust you know my measurements and what sort of clothes I like?"
"Of course." She was his twin, his mirror, his other half; of course he knew her measurements!
"Get me just one dress and a set of underclothes. I'd like to choose the rest of my clothes."
"Aye. One dress and a set of underclothes. I promise I'll be quick."
"I'll be waiting inside."
Before he could form a reply, she had walked into the diner. Dammnit, she'd not given him a chance to tell her what to order for him. Ah well, he was so hungry he could eat anything.
Sighing, he began his search. He passed a clothing store, but from the banner above he wasn't sure if they sold more than dresses. He continued on until he came to another building; this one a large stone building with a wooden door. There was a large cloth banner decorated with drawings of dresses, pants, shirts, and shoes hanging above the establishment's wooden door.
He noticed that just like in King's Landing the establishments in Pentos were typically made of brick, though there seemed to be far more stone buildings than in King's Landing. A most unfortunate thing, for perhaps if King's Landing had more stone buildings Drogon wouldn't have caused quite as much death and destruction.
Heading inside, he decided that we would just buy the necessities for himself and what Cersei had asked him to buy. He would be in and out as quickly as possible. They would eat their first meal in Pentos together and he would even get a friendly conversation going if he could. Things would improve for them sooner, rather than later.
—-
In the shop, Jaime noticed that he was getting some very strange looks. He tried to ignore them as he approached an aisle with piles of shirts stacked neatly.
He started looking through the shirts, just trying to ignore the stares, when somebody whom he presumed to be the shop owner, or a hired hand, approached him. The man wanted Jaime to go in the backroom with him, but from his tone, Jaime sensed that it was more of a demand than a request. For fear of being kicked out empty-handed, he agreed and followed the man.
The man cut right to it once they were alone together. "I cannot help but notice your sad state of dress."
"I have coin to buy if that is what you're concerned about."
"You don't look it. What happened to you?"
Shit. He knew he had better think fast if he didn't want to arouse suspicion. "I...I...I was drunk. I slipped and cut my foot. My wife found me wandering the roads and bandaged me up using my shirt; but I had wandered too far from home so we had to come into the city for the night." He wasn't sure the man would buy this story, but it was partially true, he had gotten drunk and slipped and cut his foot, and they certainly had wandered far from home.
The man eyed him somewhat suspiciously and Jaime tried to neutralize the situation by voicing his concern about the shop being unguarded.
"Worry not for me. My wife is out there to keep an eye on things."
"So then are you a shoemaker and your wife a seamstress?" Jaime asked.
The man looked at him oddly and for a second Jaime worried he had offended him in some way. As quick as the worry surfaced, the sound of the man's laughter broke through, "You aren't from around here are you?"
His face must have registered panic because quickly the man explained, "Tis alright. We're getting a lot of you overseas travelers as of late. Can't blame you for rushing to flee with how things are over there. Not seen any looking as rough as you though. But to answer your question, no, certainly not. My wife might add on tassels, fringes, feathers, and embroidered designs to much of our clothing, and some more expensive additions such as buttons, pearls, and cabochons of glass or semi-precious stones at times. Typically we buy clothes from locals to resell. We have used clothes as well if you cannot afford-"
Jaime cut him off, "I can afford it!" Cersei would be aghast if wearing used clothing became their new norm.
"How much you got?"
He'd not bought any clothes when he had visited Pentos all those years ago so his knowledge regarding the cost of Pentosi clothing was still nonexistent. He suddenly regretted that in his youth he had not devoted more time to studying free city finance. He had always focused so much on getting him and Cersei there that he had given little thought as to the rest. He did at least have some knowledge regarding housing at least, but that would serve no use at the moment.
Seeing his reluctance, the man stated, "I'm not going to cheat you. Look, most people would not even entertain the thought of somebody who looks like you in their shops at all. But I've been where you've been, albeit I was certainly much younger. So I want to help. My name is Belonar, what is your name?"
"Janus," replied Jaime.
"Janus. A fine name. What is it you need, Janus, and how much coin do you have?"
"My wife is eating and wishes for me to be quick. She said to only buy her a dress and some underclothes and myself a shirt and shoes," he explained. "This is all I have on me." He grabbed the coins out of his pocket and showed Belonar.
"This isn't enough for all of that!"
Jaime's face fell and he asked, "How much for just a shirt and dress then?" He knew he likely needed a shirt to get into the diner and he wanted to not completely disappoint Cersei so he reasoned a dress for her to change into and a shirt for him would be the best options. He couldn't help but be a bit annoyed at her for putting him in this situation. If only she'd entrusted him with more coin. If only she had torn the damn shirt rather than wrap the whole damn thing around him.
"You have only enough coin for a shirt or a plain dress with that coin, not both, and certainly not shoes in addition."
"Oh. I suppose I'll get the shirt then." He needed to get back to Cersei. Perhaps if at first glance he looked properly dressed they could at least have a meal together. Hopefully, nobody would notice his missing shoe. Regardless, he didn't want to keep Cersei waiting long. Their meals likely hadn't even been served yet and if he made it back soon they'd be able to enjoy their first meal in Pentos together.
"Well, off to the right is all the plain clothing we've just gotten in. Off to the left is clothing my wife added some designs to, that we've not gotten around to setting out yet, so ignore those. Look around and see if you can find anything that looks like it would fit.
"Thank you, I won't be long." Wanting to hurry, he selected the first shirt he saw; a plain grey shirt that looked like it would fit. "I'll get this and then come back with my wife after we make another visit to the bank. I suppose I should have withdrawn more." He lied, not wanting it known that he had no say over the finances.
"I don't know why, considering what you look like, but I believe you so I will do you a kindness. You can have shoes as well, provided you come back to pay before nightfall. You may also select one dress, one set of female undergarments, and come and quickly pick them up with your wife when you return with the money owed."
Of course he would return, he'd planned to anyway, and Lannisters always...but no, he wasn't a Lannister anymore. Nonetheless, he would honor this debt. Still, he couldn't help but voice his shock and ask Belonar why he would trust him.
"That sword there looks extraordinary. Whoever you are, you clearly come from a family with wealth, or at the very least had money to buy that at some point. I am guessing like many others you recently fled from Westeros."
He felt a rush of panic. If Belonar knew that he was not only from Westeros, but from a high-born family, then how long would it be till he figured out who he and Cersei really were? How many stories of the Kingslayer had reached Essos? Surely the story of him killing the Mad King was known here, but was it also known that he was missing a hand? Belonar had to have noticed. How long until he put everything together?
More importantly, what was that about others fleeing from Westeros? Surely he must mean refugees from King's Landing, fleeing from Daenerys' reign of terror. If that was the case, then it wouldn't be long until somebody recognized one or both of them. Cersei had been right after all. It would be too risky to settle in Pentos.
"You alright?" Belonar asked when he failed to reply.
He thought of lying, insisting he wasn't from Westeros, but he had the feeling Belonar would see right through it. "I'm fine. Just surprised you figured it out. So there are a lot of us foreigners arriving then?"
"In the past two days, I've seen more of your people than in the past year. Can always spot one of you. You talk funny. And dress funny. Though I haven't seen any looking as haggard as you. No offense."
"None taken."
"Now let's get you the rest of what you need. What size is your wife?"
He made a guess as to Cersei's size, adding a few inches due to her pregnancy, even though in his opinion she barely looked pregnant. Belonar directed him to where the appropriate clothing was.
He tried to ignore the watchful eye of Belonar as he made his selections. First, he chose a pair of shoes for himself, picking the first ones he came across that were in his size. Next, he selected some underclothes for Cersei. Now was the difficult part. A dress for Cersei. Hesitantly he shifted through simple dresses, but all of them seemed too ugly or simple for Cersei.
Noticing his disappointment Belonar spoke. "I'm to assume your wife is not used to such simple clothes. If you must, there are some inexpensive dresses with minor frills that will perhaps satisfy her more than these plain dresses.
"Thank you," he replied, shocked by the shopkeeper's kindness.
As he shifted through the other stack of dresses, the sight of emerald green caught his eye. He removed the dress and took a closer look at it. It had few frills, in fact, the only accessory it had was a golden-colored sash that looked to be adjustable. It was a typical Pentos dress, long and flowing, with the sleeves ending at the shoulders. Though it was perhaps not appropriate for the winter, they could always buy her a cloak. Pentos was thankfully nowhere near as cold as Winterfell, or even King's Landing had been, but it was getting colder, though thankfully there was no snow on the ground yet. Perhaps most importantly, due to its coloring, Cersei was sure to at least not entirely hate it.
Having made his selections, he informed Belonar.
"Good choices. I trust you will be back with the money before nightfall?"
"As soon as we finish our meals and my wife changes into the dress. I give you my word."
"Where will you be eating at?" Asked Belonar.
He struggled to remember what the name of the establishment was. "I cannot recall the name, but it is very near to here. Perhaps a dozen or so establishments down from this one. A stone tavern with a picture of ale carved into a wooden sign above it."
"Aye yes. Spices and more. They primarily sell spices. The owner decided a year or so ago to serve patrons. In truth, I much prefer the food at Duck Dining," said Belonar.
He gritted his teeth, deciding not to tell the charming tale about how he'd been kicked out of there for his lack of proper clothing. "Thank you for this kindness. I'm afraid I have to ask for one more favor, however. I'd like to change in here, if it is alright."
"Sure thing."
With that, he put on the new shirt. Next was the shoes, which required removing the makeshift bandage Cersei had used his previous shirt as. He assessed the damage. His ankle was still paining him when he walked, but at least his foot wasn't bleeding, and the cut didn't look too deep. At this point, it was too early for any sort of infection to set in. He'd see a maester about it to make sure that didn't happen, Cersei wanted to see one anyway, just to make sure everything was fine with the baby.
Once Jaime said his farewells to Belonar, he headed to meet back up with Cersei.
Curious to know what you guys think of Belonar. He will be featuring more in this.