CHAPTER 20

The next day, in the afternoon, Carolie went into labor. It took a long time into the morning for her to dilate big enough to begin pushing. As all of this was happening the maester was in the corner of the room spewing hateful comments and trying to scare Carolie. Sevron was in the hall not doing a damn thing about it. Geremy went up to the maester and brought three of his loyal soldier friends to haul the maester out of the room ranting, swearing, struggling and enraged.

All while Carolie screamed and Ivy had Jorah helping her. Ivy yelled at Carolie to not push as she cried out wanting to. Ivy couldn't get the baby unwound wrapped in the umbilical cord after several attempts. If Carolie push the baby would strangle. They kept shouting at one another. Ivy gave it one last try to get it over the baby's head. It worked finally and the baby was freed. She had Carolie push a few times as the head came out, then the shoulders and lastly the baby slipped out completely. Celia swiped the gunk out of the baby's mouth, cut the cord clamping it with hairpins because it was all she had until she had time to properly tie it off. The baby wasn't crying. She held the boy up by the feet and slapped it to get it to cry. It took a couple tries and the boy started to scream. She wrapped him in a cloth handing him to Jorah. She began cleaning up a bit until the afterbirth was coming out.

Carolie asked, "What is it?"

Ivy said seriously, "A healthy baby boy, Carolie. He was moving so much inside of you that he wrapped himself in the cord around his neck that connected him to you. He would have died had I not made you hold back pushing. If I couldn't have got it, I would have had to cut you" Carolie looked exhausted and relieved.

Carolie said sleepily, "My sister died from that. The last child I had was too big and almost didn't come out." Another contraction hit and Celia was able to get the placenta out of her and into the bucket she had for it. She completed cleaning her up and put a thick cloth folded in between her legs as she was bleeding normally. She removed all of the soiled linens and laid a clean thickness under her on the bed. Jorah was still holding the baby and she prepared a warm bath in a metal pan big enough. She pushed all of the gunk out of the baby's nose and mouth with her fingers, then tied off the cord with the thread. She dried and diapered him as he fussed. Jorah was amazed watching her.

As she was swaddling the little boy loudly crying, she said to him softly, "Now, now enough of that. Your mama is over there waiting for you and you're going to make her think I would pinch you to make you cry like this. You silly little boy." Carolie listened to her smiling. Ivy carried the little boy over and put him in her arms.

Ivy said smiling, "Here's your loud little man, sweet mother." Carolie took him in her arms so thankful and cuddled him. Ivy went back to cleaning up.

Suddenly the door busted open and Maester Brenett came charging at her with a knife brandishing in his hand slashing at her violently. He screamed in a rage, "I'm going to fucking kill you, you fucking whore!"

Jorah grabbed for him and he slashed him in the arm. Jorah wrestled him to the ground pinning him as Ivy bashed him in the head knocking him out. Geremy and Sevron were right behind each other.

Sevron screamed, "What did you do to my maester! Guards!"

Ivy stood up, got in his face irritated and shouted, "Your maester has lost his gods be damned mind! He charged in here with a knife and tried to attack me screaming he was going to kill me and calling me a whore!" The baby was screaming, Carolie was frightened and Geremy went over to comfort her.

Geremy asked Carolie, "Who is this?"

Carolie said sobbing, "You perfect healthy son who almost died strangling to death but Ivy saved him and me." Geremy smiled happily. He then noticed the guards grabbing for Ivy as she backed away.

Geremy shouted, "Sevron! What in the seven hells are you doing! She saved my wife and son!"

Sevron shouted at him, "She tried to kill our cousin, Brenett! You fool!"

Geremy shouted as the baby was crying, "You know damn well, Bernett broke away from the guards holding him! That's why we were running after him in the first place! You even knew he had a knife because it was yours he grabbed off your belt! What hell is wrong with you! She saved my wife and little boy?! Why would you do this?!"

Sevron shouted, "Because she's a woman, a whore and thinks she's better than men are! Bernett said she was a threat to all of us if she undermines men!" Jorah had enough. He was so angry at all the threats to Ivy and himself by that maester. The man behaved with disgusting lewdness and then to do this because she succeeded.

Jorah spat angrily, "She does not! Your maester has threatened her and me since we both arrived here for one purpose to save Ser Geremy's wife and son! When in the Seven Hells has saving a mother and child been a criminal act?! Your maester came in here to stab Ivy to death and slashed my arm instead as I tried to stop him! He is insane and craven you fool to be threatened by a woman delivering a baby! We're leaving anyway tomorrow and happy to leave your inhospitality and lack of appreciation behind us!" Sevron frowned and had his guards follow him out of Geremy's rooms taking Bernett with him. Suddenly, maids appeared out of nowhere after all of the trouble and the birthing was over.

Ivy said gently tugging him to her work space, "Come Jorah, my love. Let me treat your wound."

Ivy took Jorah to the clean bowl of water and washed his forearm with soap so she could see how deep it his wound was. She cleaned it with rum after to his hissing painfully, had to sew it up with a few stitches in the deep places of the three inch gash and wrapped it up in clean bandages. She smiled and kissed him caressing his face making him smile looking in her eyes.

Ivy said to Geremy, "Be safe and watch over your family, Ser Geremy. I hope you get a new maester for the Twins. I wouldn't trust that man with a scratch. He violently pleasures himself in his room on a large stick in the corner of it and a clamp in the corner to hold it for… that purpose. I saw it in a vision. He has a deep hatred of women and I can't imagine he is very kind or gentle with them." Ser Geremy nodded knowing that most women in the keep tried avoiding going to him unless with an escort.

Ivy walked with Jorah and her belongings out of the room and went to their room locking the door. She and Jorah heated and took a bath. They stayed in the room for the rest of the night.

At the break of dawn, both Ivy and Jorah headed to the village outside of the twins to restock for their trip back to White Harbor. Geremy was sad and sorry to see them go. He said that he owed them a favor and anything they needed from him they only needed to ask. They had shaken hands and left. Her guards said they were glad to go because they believed the kitchens were feeding them bread with sawdust in it and very weak soup the whole time.

Once they were stocked up in the village, they all headed out crossing back over at the Twins to the Kingsroad. They and their twenty guards went north to Moat Cailin then to White Harbor. Ivy thought, 'Never was trying to do a good deed for someone, so damn difficult. I can't believe they were so rude even to my guards.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~6mo. (297AC)

When they got in at White Harbor, Nicodemus was eleven moon turns old and weighed 90 pounds. Everyone got settled in on the ship and got everything stocked up because they were headed to Pentos. She was going after the second treasure map and she was bringing guards this time for the desert crossing. That meant more attention

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(6.75mo.297AC)

They arrived early morning in Pentos at the docks and the Ironborn were docked there and occupying the city. The captain was on high alert restocking the ship immediately in case of trouble.

Ivy woke up in the morning moaning from waves of pleasure melting over her body. She was being made love to by Jorah. He open mouth-kissed her while his hands were all over her body grasping and kneading her flesh. His body was thrusting hard into her pelvis, circling and grinding into her pussy stimulating her more. He pulled up her legs higher and spread her wider.

He sat up bending his knees spread below her butt cheeks and watched as he powerfully pounded into her body. He began stimulating her clitoris with his hand.

He said, panting heavily, "I woke up… from a dream… your mouth was wrapped around my cock… I was so aroused by you… I had to have you." She loved when he was sexually needy for her. It showed his desire for her in his dreams. He laid back on top of her.

She whispered moving her hips against him, "Fuck me hard… Faster, Jorah… Yes… Just like that…Ahhh… Yes… mmmmm…. So good."

Their bodies were slapping from the sweat building up. Her mouth was licking his salty skin and nipping at his throat. He had his eyes closed controlling himself as she came grasping his body to her. He kept pounding until he came so hard inside her perfect tight pussy that always squeezing him dry. He loved the feel of her body against his own. He was completely and totally in love with her. Ivy loved him too. He was a generous lover, a kind strong protective man and they were completely in love with each other.

She whispered to him, "Let's start our day, my sweet Jorah. We can break our fast and then we have a treasure hunt to prepare for." She lifted his head and kissed him passionately.

He nuzzled her neck licking her ear and said softly, "As long as it's with you."

They got up and took a bath together, got dressed and broke their fast. They both went out into the city marketplace with her year old shadowcat at 95 pounds at her side and she started sending things to the ship from the vendors with her entourage of guards. People were giving her a wide berth because of her group of men and her large black cat.

During the process of getting things, there was a ruckus up ahead by a vendor. Ivy and her cat, Jorah and her guards went up to see what was happening. A man in white silver hair was beating a young girl who was cowering at his feet. He was striking her with his fist and slapping her around. A young woman with silver white hair was standing there watching with her hands to her mouth and twitching every hit the girl was getting.

He screamed at her, "Your stupid little bitch, you have released the dragon! How dare you! I can destroy everything you own if you don't get me what I want!"

Ivy pushed everyone aside and shoved through, Jorah called out to her, "No, Ivy !" He was following behind her. When people saw her cat they moved out of the way.

Ivy shouted out, knowing exactly who this was, "See here, stop this!" The young man looked up at her with a vicious look in his eyes. She knew it was Viserys from her visions and he was a cruel childish young man at the same age as herself but his maturity was stunted.

He turned on her and growled , "Who do you think you are to tell me what to do?! I am the dragon! I am king!"

She looked at him like looking at a child and said, "King of what?"

He looked at her angrily and shouted, "I am the rightful king of Westeros!"

She said calmly, "Not yet. I know who the king is and if you are the rightful king you are acting like a spoiled tyrant right now. Your behavior is appalling if you want people to follow you. At this point I don't see one person who would ever want a king who acts like a foolish temperamental child like this. Leave that girl alone and stop being a craven woman beater."

He smirked, pulling his sword and sneered loudly, "Or what?! You're nothing but a stupid weak woman! You can't do anything to me!"

She said smiling, "And you are a fool to think that." Viserys marched over to her with his sword drawn and aimed at her. Nicodemus growled and screamed at him showing his teeth and rearing up showing his claws. He sounded like an enraged cougar. Viserys stopped in his tracks looking scared at the cat.

Ivy had her dagger out twirling it and said deathly calm to him while looking directly in his eyes, "If I were you, I would slowly put that sword back in its sheath and step one step at a time backwards away from me and my cat. He could very easily rip out your throat for threatening me like that. Then again, I could throw this dagger accurately straight into your eye socket without a blink of an eye. You are nothing here to anyone, your Grace but a title. You need to remember that and learn your first lesson is to find some humility. You have no lands, no army, no followers, no crown, no throne, no power at all and no money to back it all up. Now apologize to the girl for hitting her!"

He sneered, "I will not!" The cat growled again at him loudly. He looked at the cat and looked at Ivy again. He looked at the girl getting up from the ground and walked off in a different direction not apologizing.

Ivy went up to the vendor girl and started talking in Valyrian to her looking at her injuries, as Daenerys watched her. Ivy reached in her purse and gave the girl about ten gold dragons. The girl didn't want to take it from her, but she folded her fingers over it and said in Valyrian, "Take it to feed your family, child. It's ok." She smiled putting hair behind her ear. The girl smiled gratefully at her. Ivy patted shoulder and turned around.

She saw Daenerys standing there watching her. She said walking up to her, "That is how a queen watches over her people with love and care for those oppressed. There is no room for being a tyrant and hurting others like your brother does trying to gain fear. Violence is only necessary when defending or stopping injustice. Just because you have a name does mean you deserve your seat along a throne as a birthright. You must earn the right to sit there before the eyes of your people, Daenerys Targaryen. You gain no respect thinking just because of your name all should bend the knee. You must be worthy first. He is not worthy of the throne because he has no compassion in his heart for anyone but himself, even you. I am Ivy Brightflame of the ship 'The Flaming Star'. If you ever need to run away from the cruel whims of your brother or need help come find me. I will be in Pentos for the next moon turn. I can protect you and show you how to be a strong, capable, intelligent woman who needs nobody to make the decisions in her life. The choice is yours to make, Princess Daenerys."

Illyrio Mopatis came marching up to them and shouted angrily at Ivy who looked still in Daenerys eyes, "Get away from her, you water rat! My ward, King Viserys, said you threatened to rip his throat out and stab him in the eyes."