EDITED: 7th Jan 2022

256 AC

A wedding was a joyous occasion, all agreed. Even if the bride's face was like thunder the whole day.

Tya felt nothing but disdain towards her soon-to-be husband. Emmon Frey couldn't have weighed more than ten stone, a weed in silk and satin. He was a man of eight-and-ten, four years older than she was, but nervous, twitchy and sullen, especially around her.

That he was scared of her was a good thing, she supposed. Better that than the other way around. She had learned that morning that Emmon was so anxious around her that her father had weakly made the suggestion of betrothing him to Genna instead, only for Lord Walder to be insistent that his son marry the eldest daughter. On your head be it.

She had spent the morning being prepared for the ceremony by Rhaella and a few other ladies, though the princess was the only one of them she deigned to speak to. Genna was there as well, making constant snide jests about Emmon and his family, but Tya was hardly going to smile that morning.

Her mother was not there of course. Part of her was almost glad for it, that she wouldn't have to see her eldest daughter married to a Frey.

Tya was very surprised when, after everyone else had left at her request for a minute alone before they had to go downstairs, her cousin Jason entered the room with a strange look on his face.

"Have you come to gloat?" She turned to glare at him as he came to stand beside her.

"Yes," He replied, though didn't seem eager to. He had only ever laughed at her expense whenever her betrothal was brought up, but now even his sly smile was gone. "You look... nice,"

Tya raised an eyebrow at the uncharacteristic compliment. Although she would admit that she did look nice, as she stared at herself in the looking glass. She looked powerful. Her dress was red and gold, her hair braided atop her head. Yet the jewels she wore were her own, not her mother's, much to her anger. Her mother's jewels were back at Casterly Rock, around the neck of her father's little mistress.

Her eyes darkened at the thought of the girl. A candlemaker's daughter who thought herself a princess the way she ordered around the servants and whispered poison in her father's ears about Tya. Her father hadn't even protested when the whore put her thieving paws all over Lady Jeyne's jewels.

"That doesn't matter," She replied to her cousin. Because it didn't. No matter how nice she looked, her father would still give her away to a Frey. "Shouldn't you be downstairs?" Her tone lacked its usual venom.

"Yes," He said again, then all his words seemed to come out at once. "You shouldn't be marrying a Frey. I'm sure you'll make his life hell,"

She actually smiled faintly at that, perhaps the first time he'd made her do so other than out of spite or vindication.

"Only for a short time,"

His eyes widened; gods, she'd hoped he wouldn't catch her true meaning. Then his face lit up wickedly.

"Truly?"

Tya grimaced slightly at the idea of admitting it, to him of all people, but he knew already. She nodded. Her cousin laughed.

"You always were a vicious bitch," He said, and without thinking, she went to elbow him in the ribs, as she would've done when they were little. He caught her arm, however, his reflexes quick from time in the training yard, and linked his own with hers tightly to stop her doing it again.

For whatever reason, she did not yank her arm away or make any kind of protest. Neither did he let go, instead just staring at them both in the mirror, her in her wedding dress. Both tall, golden and beautiful.

He had to ruin it, of course, lips twisting in a grin.

"I will mock you for years to come, you know, that Emmon Frey will be the first man you kiss,"

What more could she do to that other than grab the back of his head and pull his lips to hers?

It wasn't exactly tender or sweet, more forceful and angry - both at him and her situation - but when she pulled back after a second or two, Jason pulled her in for another, slightly longer one.

When they broke apart, there was a wicked glint in his eye.

"Don't say a word," She warned. He did, of course.

"And you think I wouldn't mock you for that?"

"Oh, shut up," She pulled her arm out of his with a roll of her eyes; Tya always was more childish around him. "You tell anyone, and I'll kill you,"

"Emmon Frey will be the first person you lay with, as well,"

"Stop it!" She glared, moving to put on her rings that lay on the table, hating it when he laughed at her.

"Was that kiss out of spite or pride?" He asked.

"Both,"

"Of course," Jason laughed again, and despite herself, Tya smiled grudgingly. It didn't pass beneath her notice that he had managed to make her smile; something that most people struggled to do on a normal day, let alone one of the unhappiest days of her life.

His grin faded at the sounds of hurried footsteps outside the room.

"I'll see you in the sept," He said in an odd tone.

She said nothing, turning away with a stony face.

The wedding ceremony was tense. Tya spoke her vows mechanically, coldly, making it more than clear with every word that she resented this union with every bone in her body. She would normally be happy to do her duty for her family - and would not have raised a word of complaint if her betrothed had been respectable but old, ugly or fat - but this marriage to a lesser house was shaming the Lannisters more than anything else she could do.

She knew Jason was sat with the rest of her family but she didn't look in his direction.

Prince Aerys was sat in the front row with his sister and glowered the entire time, like a child moody because someone had deprived him of his favourite toy. He and Rhaella were the only Targaryens who had come to this dismal wedding at the Twins. King Aegon had intended to attend - joking that he had to try one last time to get his best cupbearer to stay - but had come down with a dreadful fever and was confined to his chambers.

Tya did not move forward in the slightest when the Septon had them kiss, giving her husband nothing but a cold stare, forcing him to move towards her, tilting his head rather awkwardly.

That same cold look remained on her face throughout the feast, as she glowered down at the entire hall from the high table. She refused to reply to her father with anything more than monosyllabic answers, eventually losing her patience when he asked if she was happy.

"Of course I'm not, you stupid man," She practically snarled, though didn't raise her voice.

Lord Tytos acted hurt for a while at that but soon forgot she was angry, brushing her aside to laugh with Lord Walder and his many other sons.

Nothing would move Tya out of the seat she sat in. Genna asked her to get up and dance, trying to take her mind off it, which she refused. Aerys did the same, and got the same response only sharper, which made him toss his hair like a scorned woman and seek out the second most beautiful young maiden in the room to dance with instead.

Rhaella came to sit with her then, making quiet conversation and trying not to act sympathetic as she knew she'd hate that; though it didn't lighten her mood, it made being here slightly more bearable.

Jason, predictably, came over to annoy her with stupid remarks every half hour, which she responded to with her usual sharp replies and cold glares, though even her irritating cousin - who she had certainly not enjoyed kissing before the ceremony - was better conversation than her husband.

Kevan spent hours glaring at Emmon Frey and their father in turn, and soon had little Tyg doing it too. After Genna whispered something in the boy's ear with a smirk, their rather fierce younger brother, only six years old, stomped up to her now-husband, who was chuckling lewdly with some other youths, and kicked him in the shins.

"Tygett!" Lord Tytos had been nearby and hurried over, looking horrified. "Why on earth would you do something so rude? Apologise to Ser Emmon - he's your goodbrother now,"

And didn't that just make her skin crawl.

"He was being rude about Tya," The boy protested, folding his arms and glaring up at the man. "And he's not my brother - I won't apologise to a weaselly Frey,"

He clearly had no more respect for their father than any of his siblings. Ordinarily, she would have told the boy off herself for the public scene he had caused with his misbehaviour, and sharply reprimanded Genna too, for putting him up to it. But seeing as that was the one thing that night that came close to making her smile, for once Tya let it go.

She herself said not a word to her husband the entire night. If he had spoken to her then she would have replied (curtly), but he did not, which was mildly amusing. She knew he was scared of her, no matter how he boasted of his pretty Lannister bride to the other boys. Even at fourteen, tall and skinny, she was near as tall as he was and had about the same amount of muscle.

Her goodfather, Walder Frey, was a repulsive old lecher who had been making lewd comments about her all evening, including many to her own father, who of course had simply pulled a face, said 'now really' in a reproachful tone and not gutted the man for his disrespect.

It was Lord Walder who made the call for the bedding ceremony. Tya hadn't been expecting that, given that it wasn't customary with brides as young as she was, and she hated how her stomach dropped. She didn't get nervous, ever. A glance to her side showed that her brother's face had darkened, and surprisingly so had Jason's.

Her father made a noise of protest against the ceremony, as Emmon Frey was carried from the room by a hoarse of giggling ladies, only to be talked back down into his seat by the slimy Lord Frey like the weak-minded fool he was.

That was it, that was truly it. She had had enough.

Tya rose sharply from her chair as a horde of eager Frey sons and knights got to their feet and turned to her.

"Touch me and you lose a hand," She said coldly, perfectly serious. Everyone hesitated at the venom in her voice, glancing at each other. She made to sweep out of the room there and then, alone, and probably could've done too had one cursed Frey not spoken up when she was nearly out the door.

"By what power, my lady?" The wretch chuckled.

It struck her then that she didn't know, and that was the worst thing of all. Her father wouldn't stop it. Lord Walder certainly would not. She had no men of her own. Her only friends here were younger than she was.

There were a few more chuckles around the room, which made her skin crawl and her temper rise. She despised being laughed at. For once, Tya Lannister - Lannister, never Frey - had nothing to say.

"Mine," She looked sharply over to Aerys as he swaggered through the crowd. "No one touches Lady Lannister, or her threat will be followed through,"

No doubt he wanted her to lavish affection on him in exchange for the rescue, however the fact she had needed rescuing in the first place made her scowl. Nonetheless, Tya supposed she should show some level of gratitude, given that he might come in useful on another occasion.

She took the prince's outstretched arm, as he led her from the room, to a lot of disgruntled grumbling from the male Freys. But no one argued with the charming yet famously mercurial Targaryen.

No doubt there would be whispers later as to why on earth Tytos Lannister hadn't married his daughter to the dashing young prince that clearly cared for her. She was wondering the same thing. Aerys was foolish and often irritated her, but he wasn't unbearable, actually good company at times. And she'd be queen one day, instead of wife of the second son of the Lord of the Crossing, which would make everything worth it. She knew that King Aegon had spoken to his son, encouraging him to marry Aerys to Tya rather than Rhaella, but Jaehaerys was stubborn.

Tya ignored the muttering about her, ignored the crude comments and stares. Tonight would be an ordeal, but she would get through it. She would never let go of her pride, however. She might be a Frey by marriage, but she would always be a Lannister in truth.

Though if she had her way, she wouldn't even be a Frey by marriage for very long.

*

Don't worry, Tya really won't be a Frey for long I promise. What did you think of the chapter? And Tya and Jason? Please leave a comment if you have a minute to spare, and thanks for reading!