𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄 | Fake

{ Lyra }

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𝕿he pavilion was quiet, as the Lyra watched her betrothed carefully. Joffrey was not giving that much away, but his entire body was tense and he looked like he wanted to snap at any moment.

"Your Grace?" Lyra raised an eyebrow, as the king looked over at her. "What is it? You look like you have something that you want to say to me."

"I gave you the opportunity to go home, and you didn't take it," Joffrey began, as Lyra shook her head slowly. "You had every opportunity that I could give you to back out, yet you did not."

"No, I did not," Lyra was not entirely sure where this conversation was leading, but she did not like how tense Joffrey's posture was.

"If you did not like it here, you should have told me instead of sending a letter to Robb begging him to come and save you," Lyra took a moment to register what her betrothed had said, her face furrowing in confusion. 

"I'm sorry?"

"You sent a letter to Robb practically inciting war and then had the audacity to beg to me to spare your father," Joffrey ran a hand through his hair.

"Wait a moment," Lyra tried to work out what was going on. "What did you say that I have done?"

Joffrey also froze, his eyebrows furrowing as he looked at her.

"You sent a letter to your brother, asking him to get you and saying that I was holding you against your will," Joffrey pulled a piece of parchment from the pocket of his jacket, handing it over to Lyra. She opened, her eyebrows furrowing as she read through it.

"I didn't write this," Joffrey's eyebrows were knitted together in confusion. "This isn't my handwriting. I did send a letter to Robb today but only at your mother's request. Tylar, our guard, sent the raven off no less than twenty minutes ago. Maybe a little longer."

"What?" Joffrey placed his crown on the table, running a hand through his blond hair that was becoming more and more unruly as time went on.

"Your mother asked me to send a letter to Robb, telling him about what had happened and asking him to bend the knee to you," Lyra replied, licking her lips.

"My mother said that she found this letter in your room," Joffrey replied slowly, as something seemed to dawn on him. "Oh shit."

"What?" Lyra raised an eyebrow. In the months that she had known him, she didn't think that she had once heard the man swear. He normally seemed to keep his emotions to himself, but something must have troubled him greatly for him to be swearing. "What's happened?"

The king groaned, running a hand down his face as he continued to curse under his breath.

"Your Grace," Lyra's tone was more clipped. She wanted to know what was going on. The king looked up at her, his eyes full of sorrow. Lyra felt her heart start to beat faster.

"I'm so sorry," Lyra's heart stopped, dropping to her stomach like a dead weight. "I'm so, so sorry."

"What have you done?" Lyra asked, her hands starting to shake, though she kept them fisted in her dress, beneath the table.

"I didn't know what to do," The king had this look of panic on his face that was not helping the matter. "I'd been king for all of twenty minutes and the Small Council was already trying to get me to sign something. Like a fool, I listened to them and I signed it. They're the Small Council, they know what's best for the realm..."

"What did you sign?" 

"I think that I signed your father's execution warrant," Joffrey's voice was so quiet, that Lyra almost missed those words. Despite them being quiet, the meaning hit her like a pile of bricks in the centre of her chest. All of the air was knocked from her, as she took a moment to process the news. "They gave me the letter, told me that it was evidence and said that I had to sign it now or else I would..."

"My father's going to die?" Lyra cut him off, choking out those words as tears began to build in her eyes. "My father's..."

She placed a hand on her heart, as she felt herself fall out of her seat. Joffrey's face was panicked, as he shot up and grabbed her, holding her upright as tears began to stream down Lyra's face.

"I'm so sorry," Joffrey whispered, looking up at the sky as Lyra's choked sobs echoes around him. "I'm so, so sorry."

"You...you sentenced my father to die," Lyra cried, hitting Joffrey's chest. The teenager barely flinched at her abuse, still trying to calm her. "You're going to kill him. You can't...you can't kill my father. Please."

"It's already done," Joffrey murmured, still not looking at her.

"You're the king!" She cried, as Joffrey finally grabbed her wrists, preventing her from hitting him again. "You can stop this. Please, please, you have to stop this."

"I don't have that power," Joffrey murmured, as Lyra's head slumped forward onto his shoulder. He didn't know what to do to comfort her and, after a moment's hesitation, he placed a hand on the back of her head and the other on her back. "I'm sorry."

He stayed on the floor until he felt the muscles in his leg begin to cramp up. Removing his hands, he gently lifted Lyra up until she was sat back on the chair, her eyes rimmed with red. Cautiously, Joffrey reached a hand up and wiped the tears away from beneath her eyes.

"Why would the Small Council do that? Why would they lie to you?" She croaked out, her voice hoarse from the crying that she had done. "Why would your mother claim to find that letter when I didn't write it? I did everything that she asked me to. I sent a letter to Robb to tell him to swear fealty."

"I..." Joffrey trailed off, shaking his head in confusion. "I don't know and that's the best answer I can give you."

"We need to find out," Joffrey looked down at Lyra, who was wiping underneath her eyes. "I won't let my father's death be in vain, I have to know what's going on."

"What...?" Joffrey trailed off once more, holding his hand out to help Lyra up. She took it, after a moment of consideration and allowed the king to help her to her feet.

"Cersei seems set on tearing us apart and causing friction between my family and you, or maybe it's just to boost her position of power," Lyra said, trying to sort all of her thoughts out, as Joffrey's eyebrows furrowed. "All of your family has been put into positions of power; you mother on the Small Council, your uncle as Head of the Kings Guard, your grandfather as Hand to the King and you are the King."

"You're insinuating something here, my Lady," Joffrey was intrigued, but this was a dangerous accusation that Lyra was making. Lyra thought for a moment more, before continuing to speak.

"I think that the Lannisters are making a play for power in Westeros, or more power," Lyra replied. "They're aiming for a war between the North and the South, the affects of which could destabilize Westeros' leading powers which would make way for the most powerful family to sweep in."

"You think that my family is committing treason, against me?" Joffrey said slowly, as he tried to bring his thoughts back into control. "My Lady..."

"Just think," Lyra cut him off. "The old hand died under suspicious circumstances that were never full investigated, and then the next hand to the king is accused of treason and your grandfather is put in his place. The king dies whilst out on a hunting trip, with no one around to see it happen and only Lancel Lannister to say that the story is true, and you are placed on the throne. The Head of the Kings Guard is stripped of his title and your uncle is put in his place and the Small Council makes you sign a decree for my father's death that is most likely going to cause a war between the North and the South."

"My Lady, you're suggesting that my family has committed treason against my father, against me..." Joffrey shook his head, his face contorting into one of confusion. "I can't...let me think. Give me some time to think."

He turned away from her, trying to think through what Lyra had suggested. The Stark girl sighed.

"I need to go to my sister now," Lyra replied, standing up and smoothing her dress out. Once she had finished, she brushed past Joffrey's tense form to leave the pavilion. A hand grabbed hers, as she turned to look back at the king.

"I can't do anything about your father now, but I would have done everything that I could to save him, if I could have done anything," He mumbled out. Lyra nodded, before turning away once more.

"I know," Joffrey let go of her wrist, watching as she swept off out of the pavilion. He watched her go with a conflicted expression on his face, still trying to sort though his mind.

Hiya,

So, Joffrey's got some decisions to make and that was kind of a roller coaster.

Anyway, let me know what you think and thanks for reading,

Love Li xx