KINGDOM FALL
— 88. Not My Father

   That day, after spending nearly the entire day with his three children and Torra, Robb returned to his chambers. It gave him some comfort to spend time with his children, who for a time, were a distraction to the hard, cold truth.

Annalys was most likely dead.

Torra wasn't that bad to spend time with either. He understood why Annalys liked her. Despite being so young, the girl was smart. She was also a warrior, oddly enough. Olyvar and especially Lyanna were already fond of her, believe it or not. Eddard, on the other hand, didn't seem to like her much. But technically, he didn't even really like Olyvar all that much.

Robb could see that Lyanna and Olyvar were now closer than Lyanna and Eddard were and that worried him a bit. Lyanna and Eddard were twins, weren't they supposed to be closer?

In his room, Robb poured himself a glass of wine. He was about to bring the glass to his lips when there was a knock on the door and Robb hesitantly told the person to come in. He immediately regretted it the moment he saw it was Margaery Tyrell entering his room.

She wore a dress that was suited for the weather down south rather than the north. Her dress barely had any sleeves and the dip in the front of the dress showed much of her cleavage.

If Annalys was there, Robb knew she'd make a comment along the lines of, "Margaery was at risk of her tits falling off from the cold."

She always said things like that about Margaery at Castle Black in her attempts at pissing Robb off by making vulgar comments about the woman who was briefly his betrothed.

Yes, Robb seemed to actually get pissed off at the comments, but deep down, he found himself finding some of them actually funny.

"You must forgive me, I've had quite a bit of wine tonight, My Lady," He told Margaery, hoping it would convince her to get lost.

If Annalys was still alive, he'd have to keep his promise to her about keeping his mouth shut about their secret marriage.

"As is your right, you are a king, Your Grace," Margaery replied, a large smile on her face, "With Annalys Lannister now presumed dead, your daughter is now Queen of the Westerlands. That makes you King in the North, the Trident, and Acting King Regent of the Westerlands."

Margaery continued to smile while Robb's expression remained unreadable. He noticed the way her hands fidgeted with the skirt of her dress. She was clearly up to something.

"What a lovely dress you have on, My Lady," He complimented her, not knowing what else to say.

"Really? You must help me, then. I can't figure out which way looks best. This way or..." She trailed off, opening up her dress.

She allowed it to fall to the ground, leaving her chest bare while her skirt covered the bottom half of her body.

Robb looked Margaery in the eye, his eyes not once ever leaving her face. It concerned Margaery. He didn't even have any struggle in looking her in the eye. Never once did his eyes travel elsewhere. He didn't want to look at her bare body. Why would he?

For each step that Margaery made forward, Robb took three steps back. She watched him do so, but still smiled nonetheless, trying her hardest not to show that what he was doing worried her.

She clearly didn't do it for him. He wasn't attracted her. And that was a first for Margaery. It seemed like any man she ever encountered was attracted to her and would have loved to bed her. Yet here Robb was, not wanting that in the slightest. She tried many times, but each time, he refused.

He always claimed he wasn't ready, but Margaery knew that wasn't the reason.

"Apologies, my lady, but--" Robb began to say, only to have Margaery cut him off.

"I heard the news. You're due to fight against Stannis in a few months time. You'll be gone for months even though you just returned. If we bed each other tonight and marry tomorrow, you could return to find me carrying a prince in my belly," She explained confidently, clearly thinking it would convince him, "He'd be the future King in the North."

Robb knew what she meant. Eddard would be placed at the bottom of the line of succession due to technically being a legitimized bastard. If he married Margaery and they had children, those children would be higher on the line of succession that Eddard, despite the boy being Robb's firstborn son.

"Lady Margaery, I--" Robb began to argue, only to be cut off by his mother yelling for the guards in a nearby hallway.

Robb paid no mind to Margaery. Instead, he ran out of the room and ran in the direction he heard his mother scream.

Just five minutes before that had happened, Lyanna laid asleep in bed while Eddard and Olyvar were in the room across the hall. The girl was sound asleep in bed, not having the slightest clue on what was about to happen.

The door opened and a hooded figured entered, holding a dagger in their hand. They began to approach the sleeping child, clearly intending to kill her.

After all, she was the key to defeating the Westerlands and taking Casterly Rock while Annalys was missing. Technically, Lyanna was Queen.

Torra had been roaming the halls out of boredom, holding a crossbow in her hand. She ended up meeting Arya soon after her arrival that day and the duo became a friend to each other, somewhat. Arya had never met a girl who was just as wild as she was before, until Torra. Torra was younger than her by many years, but they got along.

Arya somehow came up with the idea of teaching Torra how to use a crossbow after Torra taught her how to properly used a pair of daggers. Arya wanted to learn the acts of fighting again. She had a dancing master, until her father died. Now she had no one to teach her. Annalys taught her some in King's Landing but after the Stark girl reunited with her mother, her mother forbade it.

After Torra taught her a few tricks with daggers, Arya taught her how to use a cross bow.

Now, here she was, roaming the halls with a loaded crossbow in hand. It was a disaster just waiting to happen.

While roaming the hallways, she soon noticed that Lyanna's bedroom door was open. She had walked through the hallway twice that night and never once had the door been opened. Why was it now?

Concerned, Torra entered the room, only to see the unknown person standing in front of Lyanna's sleeping body, on the verge of stabbing her with a knife.

"Get away from her!" She shouted in a stern tone, causing the unknown man to turn to her with wide eyes.

The man, having no other choice, began to rush toward Torra, who in no way seemed intimidated. Without a care in the world, she shot the man before he could reach her. The crossbow bolt glided through the air before stabbing the man right in the throat.

He began to choke, blood pouring out of his neck as his body hit the ground.

"Ah-ha!" Torra practically laughed in victory at the fact she successfully hit her target on the first try.

Lyanna, who was woken up by the commotion, sat up from her bed, rubbing at her eyes. "Torra, is that you?" She innocently called out, not being able to see much due to the darkness.

The only light shining in the room was the light that came from the opened door. "Close your eyes," Torra demanded in a stern tone, not wanting the young girl to see the corpse of her would-be assassin, "I spilled wine all over the floor. I don't want you to see it."

"Why can't I see it?" Lyanna asked, not understanding what Torra meant.

"Because if you actually see the wine, you have the chance of telling someone," Torra answered with the first thing that came to mind, even though it didn't make sense.

Lyanna opened her mouth to argue, only to shut up when Torra went over to her and grabbed her hand. "Let's go find your father. Don't slip on the wine." She warned her and just as they were about to reach the door, Catelyn entered.

She entered to find the unknown assassin dead on the ground, lying in a puddle of his own blood. A crossbow was laid out next to his body and a few feet away from that was an unknown girl, who happened to be Torra.

Torra stood with Lyanna, covering the girl's eyes with her hands when Catelyn entered. "Can I open my eyes now?" Lyanna contently asked, oblivious, "The wine can't be that bad. Mother spills wine all the time at her castle. The servants can clean it up. My father will never know."

"Trust me, Lyanna," Torra whispered to Lyanna softly, "It's bad. You don't want to see it."

"You better not have gotten it on my new shoes. Those were a early name-day present from my grandmother Catelyn." She explained, not knowing that Catelyn was right there, "She's already mad that I ruined my last shoes."

"By the Gods!" She finally exclaimed before turning to scream for the guards.

  Several moments later, the guards arrived and took the body away. Robb arrived soon after that as well after hearing his mother's scream.

He entered the room to find Torra holding Lyanna's hand with Catelyn trying to convince her to give her the child. Even Lyanna refused, wanting to be with Torra instead of Catelyn, oddly enough.

"I don't know who you are, girl, but--" Catelyn began to snap at Torra, growing fed up with Torra refusing to give Lyanna to her own grandmother.

"I don't know who you are, either, which is why I'm not giving her up, woman! Touch her and I will make sure you regret it for the rest of your life," Torra snapped back, much to Catelyn's horror.

"Your parents should punish you for your lack of respect!" Catelyn scolded the unknown girl, "That is my granddaughter and you will give her to me or I will call the guards."

"Do it," Torra told her daringly, glaring at the elder woman, "I'll finish them off, too."

"Torra," Robb suddenly spoke up, causing the two females to turn to him, alongside Lyanna, "Give Lyanna to me."

Torra smirked in satisfaction as Catelyn's mouth gaped open in shock. Torra walked over to Robb, handing him Lyanna. Lyanna seemed content, clearly half-asleep and oblivious to what was going on.

"That's your mother?" Torra questioned, gesturing toward Catelyn.

Watching Robb nod, Torra scoffed in response, "No wonder my grandfather bedded another. I would rather kill myself than have her as my grandmother," She bluntly stated, much to Robb and Catelyn's shock.

Lyanna, despite not actually knowing what Torra said, giggled when she saw her father and grandmother's priceless reactions. "I like her!" She exclaimed happily, a bright smile on her face, "Can we keep her?"

"I'm not a pet. You can't just keep me," Torra scolded Lyanna, but both girls began to laugh, oddly enough.

Catelyn frowned at Torra and her previous statement while Robb sighed in defeat, frustrated that Torra's bluntness gave away the truth.

"What is she talking about, Robb?" Catelyn spoke up in a stern tone.

"It doesn't matter right now," Robb argued, shaking his head, "Stannis just ordered one of his men to harm my daughter. I believe it's finally time we join Annalys' side and end his reign once and for all."

Catelyn scoffed loudly, shaking her head in disapproval, "Oh, Annalys, the woman who has disappeared off the face of the earth while her castle is under attack?" She complained in a frustrated tone, "Sounds like a perfect idea."

"Mother," Robb warned Catelyn in a low, stern tone, "You have no idea what happened to her or why she's gone."

"She abandoned her family, her people, and her children," Catelyn spat, despite Robb demanding that she give it up, "It doesn't matter why she's gone. She still abandoned everyone she cared about when they needed her the most. She left her own children! What kind of woman does that? Definitely not a mother."

"Don't talk about matters you know nothing about," Torra snapped at Catelyn coldly, butting into the conversation without a care in the world, "Annalys Lannister is a better woman than you'll ever be."

"Robb," Catelyn spoke up in a frustrated tone, giving her son a warning look, "I don't know who this child is or why she's clung to you like a dog, but you will keep her out of my sight from now on."

"Don't worry," Torra spoke up, a smirk on her face as she stared up at Catelyn, "I can't do that perfectly on my own. Wouldn't want you ruining my day."

Torra smiled, mockingly bowing to Catelyn before walking out of the room, "You're welcome for saving Lyanna by the way!" She shouted to them as she walked away, causing Robb to roll his eyes, despite beginning to
grow somewhat fond of the out-of-control girl.

She, indeed, was just as bad as Annalys had been. And if Robb hadn't just lost Annalys, he'd probably be laughing at his mother's expression.

_____

After leaving Lyanna's room, Robb brought the girl to the closest vacant room, which happened to be Jon's old room, the one he resided in before taking the black.

"I don't like this room," Lyanna complained as Robb sat her down on the bed and placed her under the covers.

"What's wrong with it?" Robb asked the girl, a puzzled look on his face as he glanced around, "It looks perfectly fine to me."

"It's boring," She complained, sounding deeply annoyed, "It's dark. Where are the colors? My room at Mother's castle is full of colors. There's a lion painted on the wall, too."

"Is there now?" Robb questioned, standing up from his seat, "You should get some sleep. It's late."

Robb turned away from Lyanna, on the verge of leaving the room when his daughter spoke up. "Is mother dead?" She suddenly asked, causing him to freeze, "Ser Edric thinks so."

Angered by the revelation, he turned to face Lyanna, "And did he tell you that?" He asked her, trying to keep his calm, "Because if he did--"

"No," Lyanna responded, shaking her head, "He said it to Lady Jeyne in my room when they thought I was sleeping. But I wasn't."

"Your mother isn't dead," Robb argued, letting out a sigh in defeat as he walked back over to his daughter, "Like I told your brother, she's just away for a while. On an adventure."

"You're lying!" Lyanna suddenly shouted at Robb, glaring at him as she sat up from lying down, "Everyone here is a liar! My mother is dead! She's dead and you're lying!" She screamed at him furiously, "And it's your fault! My mommy wouldn't be dead if she didn't meet you! I don't like you!"

Robb remained silent, not listening to Lyanna's outburst. He learned not to that day, the girl somehow thought it was okay to purposely say things to people even when she didn't mean them, solely to hurt their feelings and piss them off.

"Are you done?" Robb asked after she finally stopped cursing at him.

Lyanna pouted, crossing her arms over her chest as she avoided eye contact with him. Her bottom lip quivered and it was clear that she was on the verge of crying.

"Lyanna, you must talk to me--" Robb began to say as he walk over to her daughter.

Suddenly, as he went to hug her, Lyanna used all the strength she had to push him away and jump out of the bed. "Get away! Get away!" She screamed at him, "I don't want you! I want to go home!"

Robb suddenly froze in place, his eyes widening at her words. Home. Was Winterfell not home? No, for her, Casterly Rock was.

"I want to go home, with Mother, to her big castle! I want to see Pod, and Grandmother Cersei, and Grandfather Jaime, and...and Uncle Tommen! Ser Edric can come with me, and...and Lady Jeyne. They can be my mama and papa until Mother comes back," She cried and Robb look absolutely heartbroken by her words.

She never once mentioned him. He realized that despite always thinking he was just being crazy for thinking such a thing, Lyanna didn't like him.

"But I'm your father, Lyanna. Not Ser Edric," Robb complained, trying to speak in a calm tone, despite what the four-year-girl was saying hurting him, "He'll never be your father."

"He should be," Lyanna glared at Robb, crossing her arms over her chest, "You don't like me. You don't take me out riding horses with you and Olyvar and Eddard. You make me sew with Aunt Sansa. I don't like sewing. You took my sword away."

"It was a stick--" Robb tried to argue, but once again, Lyanna cut him off.

"It was a sword!" Lyanna shouted at him, "You won't let me do anything I want to do! You make me stay in this dumb castle while Eddard gets to have all the fun. I want Mother back. If you don't give her back, I'll run away and find her myself."

"You can't do that, you're but a child," Robb complained, not believing Lyanna's threats.

"A queen," Lyanna corrected Robb with an attitude, taking him by surprise, "I'm queen. I can do what I want. Grandmother Cersei says when I'm Queen I can do whatever I want. She says I can make anyone do anything I want to."

Robb's eyes widened slightly, suddenly feeling as though Annalys' disappearance wasn't the only reason Lyanna was so defiant and refused to listen to her father's orders, the true reason why she was being so bratty. "What else did your grandmother tell you?" He questioned the girl curiously and for once, Lyanna didn't yell when she spoke to him.

"She said that the people in this castle are bad men and I can't trust him. And I can't trust you. She said I don't have to listen to you. I only have to listen to Mother. She said that we're the only ones who matter. Her, Grandfather Jaime, and Mother," She explained, much to Robb's horror, "She says you're not the boss of me. You're not my king. I shouldn't like you. You hurt Mother. She said you're a bad man and I shouldn't listen to bad men. She said one day, I'll be Queen and I'll control everyone. I can do whatever I want now and Mother will always be there to clean up the mess. Just like Grandmother Cersei did with Joffrey."

  Robb tried his hardest not to snap right then and there. It wasn't Lyanna herself making her act in such a way. It was what Cersei told her. She was being manipulated by Cersei into thinking she could act like a total psychopath and get away with it. Just like Joffrey.

No. Robb refused to let his daughter become Joffrey, nor would he allow her to be manipulated by Cersei. Not anymore.

"Are you tired?" Robb suddenly asked and despite not knowing why he asked, Lyanna shook her head to give him her answer, "It might be frowned upon to practice sparring this late at night, especially with a princess, but it's my castle," He paused, moving closer to Lyanna before kneeling in front of her, "Our castle. Whatever your grandmother said, Winterfell isn't filled with bad men. These people are your family. You might be half Lannister and a lion, but you're also a Stark. A wolf. A wild one, at that. You're my daughter, no matter what. Now, daughter, how you like to spar with your father in the courtyard?"

Lyanna's eyes lit up at the thought. She smiled brightly, nodding her head.

"Let's go, then," He decided, holding out his hand to her.

Lyanna hesitantly grabbed her father's hand, just before he led her out into the courtyard.

  Robb already had trouble sleeping that night, as did Lyanna. Because of that, the duo ended up spending their entire sleepless night in the courtyard, sparring with the smaller versions of swords Robb formerly had made for Eddard and Olyvar.

Robb taught the girl a bit on how to defend herself while also filling her head with good thoughts and advice, to make up for what Cersei had been telling her for gods knows how long. For the first time, Robb finally felt like he was truly bonding with his daughter. It was a wonderful feeling, to form a bond with his eldest daughter, his only daugher, his first born.

The following morning, Robb was forced to prepare to leave for battle again, despite only being home for not even a day.

After saying goodbye to the rest of his family, Robb stood in front of Eddard, Olyvar, and Lyanna, all of which seemed saddened to watch him go. He couldn't believe it, he was actually going to leave knowing his daughter somewhat past his disliking toward him. That she no longer disliked him.

"Please don't go," Eddard pleaded with his father, beginning to cry.

"Hey," Robb tried to comfort his son, placing a hand on his shoulder, "We will see each other soon, I promise. Once I've won against Stannis, I will return. With your mother."

Hearing her father's words, Lyanna's eyes widened in shock, "Mother?" She asked, clearly feeling delighted by the news.

"Yes, your mother," Robb responded, nodding his head in confirmation.

He then turned to Olyvar, who looked out of place, "When I've helped Annalys win the war, we will all live in King's Landing together. As will you," He informed Olyvar, who seemed saddened by his father's departure.

Robb was the only one who treated him nicely there besides Lyanna and Ser Edric. Olyvar was treated worse by Catelyn and the others at Winterfell than Jon ever was. After all, Olyvar's birth was what, in truth, caused "Annalys' Rebellion." If Annalys hadn't learned of Eleanor Mallister being pregnant with Olyvar, there was a chance the war wouldn't have happened. Despite that, Annalys had promised soon after she and Robb married just South of the Wall that she would legitimize him and make sure he was never treated poorly again.

She didn't do it for Robb, either. She did it for the child who was innocent and clearly being treated poorly for being a bastard.

"As Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, Annalys will legitimize you. You will be Lord Olyvar Stark, the legitimate son of Robb Stark," He continued on and soon enough, he spotted a small smile form upon the small boy's lips.

With that, he hugged each of his children, just before riding away on his horse, Torra unluckily coming with him since he didn't trust what she'd do at Winterfell without him around to keep her under control.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

So Lyanna is a TOTAL brat and it's not only being caused by her mother's absence but also bc of Cersei. Lyanna is a risk of becoming just like Joffrey.

After all, Annalys claimed toward the beginning of this book that she believed the only reason Joffrey turned out the way he did was bc of her mother and Annalys turned out the way she did bc of jaime.

Not even four years old and Cersei's corrupting the poor girl🤷🏻‍♀️

I feel bad for Torra in this chapter the most tho.

SHE JUST SAVED LYANNA'S LIFE AND DIDN'T EVEN GET A THANK YOU.

She's nine years old. Nine! She's being forced to live with people she doesn't know, away from the wildlings, and her entire family has died. (Mother, father, brother, and maternal grandparents).

No one seems to realize that and for someone so young, she's handling it pretty well 🤔