To be confined in her chambers was all that was said about her punishment. While her mother was confined in the black cells and her brother was restricted to his chambers and forbidden from interacting with anyone outside his guards, Myrcella was only confined to her chambers and nothing else. Tommen had received the same sentence as Joffrey, much to Myrcella's dismay. She had expected her younger brother to receive the same punishment as her, but to hear the opposite, Myrcella feared for her and her brother's lives. What if things didn't go as planned? What if the King killed them as well?
It was a few days of anxiety and tears later that Myrcella was able to understand why Tommen had received a harsher punishment. The boy was young, he was most likely to spill secrets that only a chosen few knew. The King and his confidants were trying to plug that hole before it leaked out anything.
Myrcella now felt stupid for not having figured it out sooner and being anxious for absolutely no reason.
With those worries out of her head, Myrcella focused fully on her daily routine. She would wake up early, have her breakfast, and then ponder on what was to come next. If things went according to plan, her uncle Tyrion would adopt her, and Tommen and the King would naturalize them as Lannisters. Tommen will be heir to Casterly Rock and Myrcella… well what could a woman do other than be married off to some Lord's son or worse an old Lord of major standing? It wasn't fair, but that was her reality, and Myrcella was ready to accept it. Perhaps in a better world, she may have had her choice of husband, but not in this one. Here that choice of hers was taken from her. The thought was depressing and took up most of the girl's thoughts. Had she hadsome distraction, she wouldn't have been as depressed. But it was not like she didn't have the opportunity to distract her thoughts. Myrcella was only confined to her room, she could speak to anyone who came freely, guard or not.
The only problem was that nobody but the guards came, and the servants who did… Myrcella wished not to speak to them. She had nothing personally against them for their station, she simply couldn't take the looks in their eyes. The way they'd look down on her as if she were scum and shouldn't exist in the world, as if everything her mother did was her fault. It hurt truthfully, the looks, and no doubt the whispers behind her back that knew was there even if she didn't hear any of it. None of the friends she'd made had come to visit her, no doubt being pulled away by their parents. She was just a bastard now, what use would a bastard have to those Lords and ladies politically? For all they knew, Myrcella and her brothers would be killed as well, and any association with them would no doubt reflect poorly on the other people. Myrcella understood, but it hurt no less.
It reminded her of Jon Snow, the Prince who was raised a bastard. How had he lived through all of this? The looks, the abandonment, the 'whispers'. But then again, Jon didn't have any of the things she had so he wouldn't have gone through the same thing as Myrcella was going through.
The girl reasoned with herself as much.
The doors opening drew Myrcella out of those cycling and spiraling thoughts. It must have been time for lunch.
The girl looked away from the window and froze.
It was not a servant who'd brought her the meal this time. The man was tall and somber, and had a dour face with a sour mouth and pouchy bags under his droopy eyes. His hair was spotted with grey. He wore a shirt of enameled scales, his greaves, gorget, gauntlets, and boots a gleaming plate.
"You're not supposed to be here" Myrcella muttered shakily.
"Doesn't matter. You're a prisoner and prisoners get no say who their guards are and who brings them their food" Ser Meryn Trant placed the food on the table, his face uncaring and cold.
Myrcella stared at the in fright, images of what she'd seen him do in the vision playing over and over in her head. She was no longer a princess, she no longer had any protection. If Ser Meryn tried something now… who would rescue her? Who would stop this knight?
"What?" the knight as blandly and Myrcella flinched. The man stared at her in silence and Myrcella could have sworn something dark and vicious swam in his gaze.
"Please.." Myrcella whispered, almost begging.
"For what?" the Knight asked, taking one of his gauntlets off.
Myrcella took a step back and her calf bumped against the wall behind her. There was nowhere else she could back into. She could always jump out the window, death was surely better than this.
"You were ordered to not enter these chambers."
The stern voice of Ser Barristan Selmy whipped the thought of suicide from Myrcella's mind. Relieved eyes turned to Ser Barristan, who stood at the door.
Ser Meryn turned as well.
"I brought her meal," the knight said coldly.
"You were ordered to not enter" Ser Barristan countered evenly.
"I stood guard outside the doors, if not I then who?"
"The servants. You were ordered to not enter."
Both brothers of the Kingsguard stared at one another, one coldly and the other sternly.
"The King's orders" Ser Meryn put his gauntlet back on slowly. "Following them to the end without a second thought… no matter how disgusting they are. You're all too familiar with it than I."
Ser Meryn left with a look at Ser Barristan.
Ser Barrist met his look and did not turn away until the man had left.
"Thank you."
The Knight turned back around and found Myrcella smiling at him. His gaze softened and he nodded at the girl.
Myrcella watched the knight leave, closing the door behind him. She fell to her knees immediately and let out a shaky sob. Quickly she schooled herself and stood, shakily walking to the food that was brought in.
Something in the food caught her eyes and she picked at it curiously.
-x-
Someone was shaking her, gently at first then most urgently. Myrcella squirmed under the covers, before turning to lay on her back and slowly open her eyes.
A hand clasped around her mouth.
Her mother's hand.
"We're leaving" Cersei Lannister whispered.
Myrcella struggled and shrugged her hand off of her mouth.
"You shouldn't be here" Myrcella hissed angrily.
Cersei looked at her in shock.
"You got my message" Cersei whispered.
"I did… but you shouldn't be trying to escape. What if they catch you?" Myrcella whispered back.
The sound of feet shuffling had her look away from her mother. She saw Joffrey rushing over to her. Forcefully the boy grabbed Myrcella by the arm.
"We don't have time for your shit right now" Joffrey hissed.
It was on instinct, Myrcella pulled her arm away and in the next moment smacked her brother across the face.
Joffrey stared at her in shock, eyes wide and hand over his cheek.
"Don't touch me you monster" Myrcella snapped.
Joffrey flinched, reeling back in shock.
"Myrcella."
Her head snapped to the side and she found Tommen standing beside their mother.
"Myrcella mother promised she won't become the monster we saw in the vision! She promised she'd love us all equally and do better."
"What- what do you mean?" Myrcella stuttered. How much had Tommen told their mother?
"You know! The thing-"
"We don't have time to talk about stupid dreams" Joffrey snapped. "We need to leave now!"
Joffrey walked back to the door that was not there before, where she found Grandmaester Pycelle and Ser Boros Blount, another Kingsguard. The man was always more loyal to her mother, Myrcella always knew that.
"Tommen just had a dream," Cersei said kindly. Myrcella relaxed. Good, she didn't believe him. "But we need to leave now. They will kill us all, my dear daughter. I can't stand to watch you all die. Because I know that fat bastard will make me watch you all die before he kills me."
Not all of them, just her, Myrcella thought. But she did not find the strength to vocalize her thoughts.
Cersei grabbed her arm gently and pulled her out of bed. She took the lead, Myrcella behind her and Tommen beside Myrcella.
"You promised not to tell anyone" Myrcella hissed at her brother.
"But… mother came for us. She can't be bad if she didn't abandon us."
Myrcella glared at her brother and Tommen looked down.
"How many people have you told…"
"No one! I promise I only told Mother a little bit."
Cersei suddenly stopped and Myrcella collided against her mother's backside. The girl looked around and found Joffrey and the Grandmaester held at sword point by men in golden armor.
"Drop the sword, Ser Boros."
Ser Boros looked from Ser Barristan to the men he'd brought with him, before dropping his sword. The Men of the City Watch grabbed him as well.
"What is the meaning of this" Cersei hissed, tone laced with anger and fear.
The doors opened and in walked Renly Baratheon and Varys with a few more men at arms.
"I believe you should be in the Black Cells" Renly smirked, "men, grab the whore and throw her back in the cells."
Cersei screamed and kicked and shouted as she was dragged away, as did Joffrey. The Grandmaester floundered and stuttered, but he too was dragged away with Ser Boros, to be put in the Black Cells as well.
"B-but, mother promised she'd be good!" Tommen argued, running to Renly and grabbing his tunic. "Please, she promised she'd be good. She promised she wouldn't do anything this time!"
Alarmed Renly looked at Myrcella, who shook her head.
His face grew dark. He grabbed his tunic and yanked it out of Tommen's grip.
"Your mother is a liar" the man spat. "We'd hoped you'd learned that by seeing what we saw."
"He is only a kid, Lord Renly," Varys said with a smile, "children are often so easy to manipulate."
Myrcella walked up to Tommen and hugged him close as the boy began to wail.
Varys turned to the girl and gave a small nod and a smile.
Myrcella smiled back.