Chapter 2 ~ The Lion and the Rose part 1 ~

I stood with Varys on a balcony overlooking the Blackwater, some of Stannis' fleet were still wrecked off the coast and their blackened masts looked like skeletal fingers reaching for the skies. I'd told Varys of my dreams, of the girl whose name I still didn't know, of the dragons and of the curse she told me about, little made Varys surprised but when I brought up the curse his eyebrows raised. 

"I know you serve the realm" I told him in an extremely quiet voice, no one was around but everyone in the Keep had spies, "you serve who you believe in and who you believe will serve the people" I looked at him, his hands tucked into his robes, his eyes watching my every move "tell me about her"

He sighed deeply "her name is Daenerys, she married a Dothraki horse lord" he met my eyes "her husband was injured and died after they attacked a village, Daenerys was heavily pregnant at the time and she had no choice but to trust a woman who was taken as a slave, the woman sacrificed her baby and husband so Daenerys took her life by burning her on her husbands funeral pyre, Daenerys joined them with 3 dragon eggs, when the fires died down Daenerys was unscathed and the eggs had hatched" I stared down at the water as it beat against the rocks beneath us, "an old friend of yours has joined her as she frees slaves" he said and when I raised a questioning brow at him, he smiled, "he was the Lord Commander before you left the city"

"Ser Barristan" I mumbled thinking of my friend, he was that for sure, he'd left after my father was arrested, Joffrey all but accusing him of helping murder Robert "I'm glad he's alive and well" i blinked hard against the harsh sun and glanced at Varys who was watching me still, "do you believe these dreams are going to come true?" I asked him truthfully "Jaime seems to think they're just dreams but these feel different, Old Nan used to tell me stories about people with the gift, Greensight she called it"

"Have I told you the story of how I was cut?" He asked me and when I shook my head, unsure where this was going to lead me he continued "As a boy, I traveled with a group of actors through the free cities of Meereen," our eyes never strayed as he spoke and for a moment I could imagine a young Varys following an acting group, "One day in Myr, a certain man made my master an offer to tempting to refuse, I feared the man meant to use me, as some men used small boys," he shook his head in disgust and I swallowed the lump in my throat "But what he wanted was far worse, He gave me a potion that made me paralysed to move or speak, yet did nothing to dull my senses. With a hooked blade, he sliced me, root and stem, chanting all the while" I flinched at the picture he painted and my heart leached against my ribs, "He burned my parts and the flames turned blue and I heard a voice answer his call, I still dream of that night, Not of the sorcerer, not of his blade. I dream of the voice from the flames" his eyes turned dark and angry "Was it a god? A demon? A conjurer's trick? I don't know, But the sorcerer called and a voice answered" his eyes cleared and he looked back at me like nothing had been shared "And ever since that day, I have hated magic and all those who practice it, who am I to deny that your dreams could be true or if they're just dreams"

"Varys.." I started to say how sorry I was but he gestured me to get over it. 

"A life time ago" he said with an easy shrug, a smile crossed his lips "I got my revenge on the sorcerer in the end" and all I could do was nod, "if you'd like to get a message to Ser Barristan I suggest you send it to Meereen, they're freeing Slavers Bay as we speak, if you bring it to me I will have one of my little Birds take it" my heart clenched when I thought about what I could write to Ser Barristan "and I would send a raven to your half brother as well" he gave me a look that screamed trouble and I nodded. 

"Thank you for your counsel Lord Varys" i curtsied and left him, I made a mental note to visit Maester Pycelle and made a beeline to Tyrions chambers where I knew he'd be meeting Jaime. 

When I entered his chamber I smiled at Podrick Payne who was Tyrions squire and went over to Tyrion "good morning sweet brother" I said kissed his scruffy scared cheek, "darling" I mumbled as I kissed Jaime's lips. 

"Took your time to join us" Tyrion commented as I sat down next to Jaime. 

"I had business with Varys" I replied with a shrug, I plucked a grape from Jaime's hand and popped it into my mouth "seems I'll have to visit Maester Pycelle" I shuddered at the thought and Jaime put his good hand on my leg as I sat next to him and Podrick came over to pour me a cup of wine "Pod, you are a god among men" I said as he blushed deeply and smiled shyly. 

"You said that to me just this morning" Jaime muttered as Podrick placed food on the table. 

"And I meant every word" i leant forward and kissed Jaime's cheek, he placed his fake hand over mine on the table and I smiled before taking another grape off the platter in front of me. 

"You're not eating. Why is no one eating?" He looked and me and I pointed at the platter in front of me and shrugged "My wife wastes away and my brother starves himself," I met Tyrions eyes again this time sharply "she insists she's not hungry but she can't quieten the growls of her stomach" Tyrion shook his head. 

"I'm not hungry" Jaime said as I sipped my wine, he barely ate with me these days. 

"You lost a hand, not a stomach" Tyrion scolded but Jaime just shook his head again "Try the boar," Tyrion tried again "Cersei can't get enough of it since one killed Robert for her" i chocked on the sip I just took and waved off Jaime's concerned look "A toast. To the proud Lannister children. The dwarf, the cripple, and the mother of madness" I chuckled and raised my cup just as Jaime went to raise his, he knocked over the cup with his left hand and growled at himself in anger. 

"I'll clean it up," Podrick was there with a rag immediately but I was up and out of my seat, I placed my hand on Podrick's shoulder and squeezed it. 

"No, I'll do it, thank you" I said as he reluctantly placed the rag in my hand, I squeezed his shoulder again, "Leave us" he nodded with a small smile, he understood that Jaime didn't want to be seen as weak and he left without hesitation, i righted Jaime's cup and stooped to clean up the mess. 

"It's only wine" Tyrion said as Jaime stared angrily at his hands, Tyrion then poured some of his wine out and onto the table to prove that it was inconsequential to get upset, I looked at him with a raised eyebrow as I wiped down the table and threw the rag into the small washing bowl by the door. 

"I'm not cleaning up your mess" I told him and he just laughed, getting up he went to get the carafe of wine to pour himself more, Jaime slumped in his chair.

"I can't fight anymore" Jaime said, sadness leached into his voice causing me to look at him, I understood his pain but I refused to let him give up as easily as he was, stepping behind him I stooped to level my face with his and wrapped my arms around his neck gently, he reached up with his good hand and touched my cheek as he leaned back more and rested his head against my shoulder, I buried my face into the side of his neck and kissed the skin there lightly. 

"What about your left?" Tyrion asked and Jaime sighed so deeply he went lower in his chair. 

"I can hold a sword, but all my instincts are wrong" he shook his head "How can I protect Anaris when I can hardly wipe my own ass?" I ran my nose along his jaw and he turned and kissed it.

"You're the Lord Commander now. Command. Let others do the fighting" Tyrion said to him and Jaime tensed. 

"When was the last time your father used a sword?" I asked the two of them and Tyrion raised his cup in agreement, Tywin hadn't raised his sword for a good many years from what I'd heard, never would when he had other men to do his dirty work.

"I'm not Father" he ground out through gritted teeth "I'm the Kingslayer, When people find out I can't slay a pigeon..." I removed myself from his back and grabbed his face, making him look me in the eyes. 

"Train, then, learn to fight with your other hand" I kissed him and once I felt him start to respond I stopped and pulled back "live, my love, if not for yourself then do it for me and our future children" I kissed him once more before standing to my full height and leaving them to finish their breakfast, I needed to see Pycelle before he scurried back to whatever hole he crawled out of.

— — — — —

I gritted my teeth as I knocked on Pycelle's door, my skin was already crawling with the idea that I'd have to talk to the man but unfortunately he was the only one who was the keeper of ravens in the city, the door opened and Pycelle gaped slightly as he took me in, he was stooped but I knew from Ros and several other whores that it was all a lie, he was pretending to be a dittery old man, my hand clutched the scroll in my hand. 

"Lady Lannister" he simpered making my teeth grit as his eyes raked down my body, "are you here for an aliment?" He stepped aside slightly so as I entered the chamber I had to brush past his body, feeling parts of him that I was very likely going to have cut off. 

"You are the keeper of ravens Maester and I need a letter sent" I said as I watched him hobble past me and towards the next chamber where the ravens were kept, their cawing became almost deafening as he opened the door "to the Wall" i all but shouted, I met his eyes and saw he had a gleam in them. 

"Would you like me to write it for you, my lady?" His eyes lingered on my chest and I struggled not to beat the ever loving crap out of him. 

"I've already written it, it just needs to be sent" he went to grab it from me but I snatched it away from his rat like hands "my private correspondence to my brother is no concern of yours Maester, so I shall wait until you send the raven"

"I am a Grand Maester of the Citidal, I assure you that anything that is discussed is completely confidential" he fumed with anger so I played the hand I knew would blow the wind out of his sails. 

"Maester I know for a fact that you spy for the Queen, I also know that anything I do is information that she would kill for so I highly recommend that you send this to my brother and keep that mouth of yours shut" I stepped closer to him making. The old man squirm as I touched the sword that I had in my hip "if you think getting thrown into the Black Cells by Lord Tyrion was bad I can assure you that my plans for you would be much, much worse" I handed him my scroll and he scampered away to attach it to the raven he would be sending to Jon, a soft caw from a raven close to me caused me to turn as he released the bird into the sky, "what is wrong with this bird?" I asked eyeing the raven that looked like it hadn't eaten in days. 

"It refuses to eat" he said he was no longer as stooped as he was when we entered the room "I was going to dispose of it before you came, my lady" i eyed him for a moment and then turned to the bird as it hopped closer to me. 

"I'll take it, better to die in comfort" i said as I grabbed the small cage the bird was kept in. 

"My lady, I'm unsure...."

"I wasn't asking Maester Pycelle," I swept from his rooms and ignored him as he called after me, that man could take a long walk out of his window for all I cared "I have you now my sweet" i cooed at the raven who called back to me as if it understood that I was saving it from dying at the hands of that rat. 

— — — — —

The scariest thing I had to do all day was to think like Bronn, Tyrion's Sell Sword, who was teaching Jaime to fight with his left hand, Tyrion decided it was a good idea to let Bronn do it because he could be paid to keep quiet. 

I gathered my skirts and walked down the spiral stairs that lead to a small grotto, I heard a grunt and a curse as I stopped to see Jaime puffing out his breath unevenly while Bronn looked unfazed by the training he was doing "I figured I would find you here" I said as I made my presence known to the two men as Jaime got to his feet. 

"How did you...?" Jaime asked and I winked at his astonished expression, he didn't want me to see him as weak but there was no way around it. 

"Bronn doesn't keep his sexual exploits secret, Pod let it slip" I shrugged and turned to the Sell Sword who was rubbing the back of his neck "Tell me Ser Bronn do you still fuck Ser Arthur Leygood's wife here?" I grinned when he looked shocked "Gods people don't realise that the servants in the Keep are quite literally the eyes and ears for anyone with a bit of coin"

"I made Tyrion promise not to tell you that I was training" Jaime said as I walked closer to him and touched his face gently and kissed his cheek lovingly. 

"He told me that Bronn would be training you because I knew you want to get stronger, he cares and so do I" I pulled the training sword from his hand and levelled it at Bronn with a smirk, in reply the Sell Sword rolled his eyes, I shrugged and turned to Jaime "I'm just going to watch, my love, just to see what we need to strengthen" I pulled him into a deep kiss which he happily returned.

— — — — —

How the Tyrells made a Royal engagement boring I'd never know "Gods if Mace Tyrell was of a pompous suck up we'd have to remove him from Tywin's arse" I muttered to Oberyn and Ellaria as we were seated away from the Royal couple and the table of 'close family' which included my sister. 

Oberyn snorted into his cup of wine and I felt Jaime tap my head as he passed while he did his rounds, I was glad he heard me because he knew I was right, Tyrell was like a leech, he was simpering around Tywin agreeing with everything the older man said, making himself and his family look like fools "your tongue is going to get you into trouble, Wolf" Ellaria scolded me half heartedly, we watched as Tyrion gave Joffrey a book on the past Kings, the dusty tome was massive and Joffrey looked at it like it was going to bite him. 

"Oh I hope so" I said as Jaime passed by in front of us, I winked and giggled when he wriggled his eyebrows at me, Oberyn shook his head and we watched as Tywin presented Joffrey with part of my family's sword, the child King couldn't help himself but show how brat like he truly is and decided he'd use the Valyrian steel to destroy the book he'd been given making everyone flinch as bits of leather and paper flew off in every direction, it was heartbreaking to see what Ice had become, what the massive sword was being used for. 

I met eyes with Tywin, he gave his grandson a pointed look and then looked back at me as if to remind me of the demand he made of me, the dagger, that was made from the same sword, was strapped to my leg under the light folds of my dress "careful Wolf, the old Lion is eyeing you like he wants you for dinner" Ellaria spoke into my ear as I continued to glare at Tywin. 

"I'm not afraid of him, he doesn't get his hands dirty, sends other men to do it for him" Tywin's stare was finally moved from me to Mace Tyrell to was vibrating with the excitement of actually talking to the older man, "I'm prepared" I glanced at Oberyn who was staring at Tywin, he looked ready to kill.

"Such a great sword should have a name" Joffrey spoke to the crowd of guests, he was beaming with excitement "What shall I call her?" 

Men started to yell out names for the sword but only one name deserved to be used, it's original name "Stormbringer" one man yelled, "Terminus" a second man shouted "Widow's Wail" I watched as a sadistic grin broke across Joffrey's face "Wolfsbane" another two man shouted making my fist clench around my knife. 

"Widow's Wail. I like that" Joffery grinned and the men cheered at the name "Every time I use it, it'll be like cutting off Ned Stark's head all over again" he looked at me a second as I stabbed the table with my knife, I got up and left the feast not really caring if the would be King found it insulting, the jabs he constantly took at my family were too much, he'd threatened to kill Storm already just to prove he could which caused him to have a red mark on his cheek from where I slapped him, it was something Cersei should've done when he was a child.