LION'S LEGACY
73. Red Viper

   In King's Landing, Loras and Lord Florent held a sigil with the Yellow Rose, awaiting the Dornishmen's arrival. Hoping for an alliance, Margaery invited the Dornishmen to her wedding with Robb. They were the only region to seemed to be neutral during the war. Seemed to be.

"How many Dornishmen does it take to fuck a goat?" Florent suddenly spoke up, wanting to break the silence between them.

Loras ended up turning to him, a deeply annoyed look on his face. "Please shut up," He snapped at the man, sounding frustrated, "I'm not in the mood."

Hearing the sounds of horses, the two men turned to see numerous Dornishmen on horseback approaching. "Ah, here we are," Loras announced, clapping his hands together, "Can you read the sigils, Florent?"

"Wild lemons on a purple field, House Dalt of Lemonwood. A vulture grasping a baby in it's talons, House Blackmont. A crowned skull, the Manwoodys of Kingsgrave," He explained in a calm tone and Loras turned to him with a curious look.

"What about the Daynes?" He questioned and when Florent shook his head, Loras sighed in relief, "Good. And House Martell, a red sun pierced by a spear?"

"I don't see it," Lord Florent responded, much to Loras' dismay.

"Fuck," He muttered under his breath before stepping forward.

Loras nodded and stepped forward to greet the first Dornish lords that approached him on horseback. "Welcome, my lords. Her Grace, Queen Margaery, welcomes you in her name. My soon to be good brother, Robb Stark, sends his greetings as well," He explained and the men rolled their eyes, knowing for a fact Loras was making that part up, "I am Ser Loras Tyrell of Highgarden, Lord Comm—"

"We know who you are," The Dornish man cut him off, a look of disgust in his eyes as he looked down at Loras.

"Forgive me. I don't see Prince Trystane in your company," Loras changed the subject, not wanting an argue to start.

"The prince's health forces him to remain at Sunspear," The Dornishman lied and Loras was foolish enough to believe him, "He sends his uncle Prince Oberyn to attend the royal wedding in his stead."

Loras' eyes widened slightly at the revelation, immediately beginning to feel uneasy and nervous. "Yes, the queen will be delighted to enjoy the company of a warrior as renowned as Prince Oberyn at his wedding feast," He forced himself to smile at the Dornishman, despite feeling uneasy.

"Will she?" He asked Loras as he raised a brow at him, noticing the uneasy look on the knight's face.

"And where is Prince Oberyn?" Loras questioned, purposely changing the subject once more.

"Arrived before dawn with his bastard son. Not a man for welcome parties, our prince," The Dornish Lord explained and unbeknownst to Loras, the bastard son he spoke of was actually the youngest son of Annalys Robb.

And he wasn't the only one of the children in the capital besides Alerie.

"Very well. My lords, these fine men from the City Watch will escort you to your quarters--" Loras began to explain, only to have the Dornish lords advance past him rudely before he could finish his welcome.

Florent and Loras were forced to step aside to make way for the men before they began walking back to the city together. "Some accomplished diplomacy that was," He remarked, causing Loras to turn to him with a glare.

"Shut up," He snapped at him in a cold tone, "Like you were any help."

Florent sighed, rolling his eyes at Loras. "Now where?"

"We must find Prince Oberyn before he kills somebody or several somebodies. How do you suggest we find a single Dornishman in a city this big?" Loras asked Florent, who began to smirk sadistically.

"He's famous for fucking half of Westeros. He just arrived at the capital after two weeks of bad roads, where do you think he went?" He complained, staring at Loras as if it were obvious.

"He has his Bastard son with him," Loras pointed out, giving Florent a weird look.

"And? Perhaps he'll show him all that the capital has to offer."

Loras scoffed in disgust, giving Florent a look of disbelief, "The boy is said to be seven, you idiot!" He complained before finally walking off.

——-

A man named Domeric and his friend, Beren, sat entangled with their prostitutes in a brothel in King's Landing, one of them singing the song, A Lannister Never Forgets.

   Just then, Oberyn entered, causing them both to turn to look at him. "You lost, friend?" Beren questioned, a small grin on his face.

"Forgive me for staring. It's been a while since I've heard that song," Oberyn responded in an almost sarcastic tone.

"It's been a while since we've seen Dornishmen in the capital," Domeric retorted, sounding nowhere near as nice as Beren did while speaking to Oberyn.

"We don't like the smell," Oberyn jokingly commented, beginning to laugh.

Just then, Little Edric suddenly entered and grabbed Oberyn to persuade him to leave. "Father, let's go," Edric insisted, continuing to play his role of Oberyn's bastard son while in capital.

"Gods, look at this one," Beren remarked, beginning to laugh at the sight of the eight year old boy in a brothel, of all places.

"Who the fuck brings a little boy into a brothel?" Domeric questioned, beginning to laugh at the sight, "Unless you've bought him for the night. In that case, carry on. Don't let us stop you."

Just then, everyone's head turned as another boy entered, one that looked no older than fifteen. Oberyn smirked slightly, immediately recognizing the boy by his grey eyes and dark hair.

He was obviously a Stark, but not just any Stark. The infamous Rickard Stark.

  "Do you know why all the world hates a Reachmen?" Rickard suddenly asked, butting into their conversation without a care in the world.

He strolled over to the two Tyrell men, a casual smirk on his face. Hearing the boy's question and his threatening tone, Domeric and Beren rose to his challenge, the whores wasting no time with fleeing from the room.

"You think your rich lands and supposed 'chivalry' make you better than everyone else. Now, I'm going to let you in on a little secret, my friends. You're not a Golden rose. You're just a little weed that has barely sprouted out of the ground. One that's practically dead now that Winter's here."

  Enraged, Domeric grabbed towards his weapon on the table, but Rickard was faster. He pierced Domeric's hand with his dagger, and trapped it against the table, causing the man to scream loudly in pain.

  Beren grabbed the hilt of his blade and began to draw, only to have Rickard turn to him with a large smirk on his face. "The longsword is a bad option in close quarters, my lords. When I pull my blade out, your friend will start bleeding. Quite a lot, actually. So many veins in the wrist, you must know."

   Rickard twisted the blade and Domeric continued to scream in pain. Oberyn grabbed Edric by the shoulder and pulled him closer. They both watched closely, Oberyn looking impressed while Edric immediately recognized his brother, despite it being so many years since he last seen him.

Rickard began to smile devilishly at his reaction. "He'll live if you get him help straightaway. Better decide soon. Time is running out."

Rickard pulled his dagger out of Domeric's hand, causing the man to let out a loud cry before he and his friend moved away quickly, running out of the brothel.

"Rickard?" Edric called out softly, causing Rickard to immediately whip himself around and stare at the boy with a confused look on his face.

"Do I know you?" Rickard questioned, clearly not recognizing his little brother.

After all, Edric had been nearly four years old that last time anyone in his family had seen him. Now, he was eight.

"It's me. Edric. Don't you remember me?" Edric asked his older brother, beginning to tear up.

He feared his brother had forgotten him. "You were dead," Rickard managed to get out, shaking his head in disbelief, "The Tyrells killed you."

"They didn't. Your mother had him sent to Dorne." Oberyn finally spoke up, adding into the conversation.

For the first time in years, Rickard found himself both looking and feeling sad. He stepped toward his younger brother and within seconds, little Edric had run into his brother's arms.

Edric hugged Rickard tightly and it took Rickard a moment before he finally began to hug back.

"Are you here for the wedding, Prince Rickard?" Oberyn found himself asking the prince curiously, not knowing any other reason he would be in the capital.

"What wedding?" Rickard asked, letting out a large scoff, "I'm here to kill Tyrells."

Oberyn tried not to chuckle while Edric looked horrified. However, he also knew Rickard killing them in the Riverlands was one thing, but being in an entire capital filled with them was going to get him killed.

He was once the smartest and most clever of his siblings. Now, his need for vengeance was consuming him almost entirely.

"Perhaps you ought to stay with your brother during the wedding. I have some unfinished business with the royal family that I don't believe Prince Edric should be apart of," Oberyn explained, gesturing toward the youngest boy there.

Rickard looked hesitant. He slowly turned his head and immediately saw how happy his brother looked to finally be with apart of his family, his real family. He sighed in defeat before finally nodding his head.

_____

     In the Red Keep, Robb was in Alerie's room, just as he always was. He was sitting on a chair while Alerie was playing with a toy on the ground.

      The door opened and a servant entered. Robb rolled his eyes, about to snap at the person to leave when something in the person's expression immediately made him realize it was Arya. "You really need to stop doing this," He complained in an annoyed tone and when the girl turned to him with the same annoyed look, Robb knew for a fact it was Arya, "How does this face thing work anyway?"

"This 'face thing' helped you get to see your wife one last time," Arya retorted with an attitude, earning a glare from Robb.

"Yes, and I pushed an innocent boy out of a window because he saw us," Robb complained, only to notice that it looked as though Arya was waiting to say something, "What is it this time, Arya?"

Arya's lips curled into the smallest of smirks. "I heard whisperings that your daughter is about to make a move on the Tyrells, but that isn't even the best part of it all," She paused, taking a step toward Robb, "Lady Olenna has traveled back to Highgarden."

"Our wedding is in less than a fortnight," Robb complained, not understanding why Olenna Tyrell would do such a thing.

"Exactly," Arya replied in a calm tone, "She doesn't agree with the marriage. She thinks Margaery's being stupid and is signing her own death sentence."

"Is she?" Robb questioned, which was his way of asking if she was planning to kill the Tyrells.

She was an assassin, after all.

"If you're asking if I have anything planned, I don't. Doesn't mean your daughter isn't," Arya commented, causing Robb to narrow his eyes at her, "And before you ask which daughter, I mean Lyanna."

"Lyanna is practically a ghost these days," Robb retorted with an attitude, "From what I've been told, she's become as useless in this war as Walder Frey was in Robert's Rebellion."

"I have a feeling you'll be proven wrong soon, Robb," Arya commented and before Robb could question his sister, she had already left.

He sighed in frustration, wondering what in the seven hells Arya meant.

____

   It was nighttime at Winterfell and Eddard and Allyria were laying in bed. Eddard was lying on his side, as was Allyria, her legs wrapped around his waist. Their fingers were intertwined as they kissed intimately in their moment of passion, panting, and glowing with sweat.

    Still panting for breath, Eddard pulled away from the kiss, lightly tugging at Allyria's bottom lip with his teeth in the process. She smiled at her husband, who smiled back, both of them only ever truly feeling happy during the war when in each other's arms.

     Eddard leaned forward, kissing his wife one last time before he stood up, placing a robe around his naked body. Allyria continued to lay on the bed, still nude as she watched him, a smile playing on her lips.

      Allyria rolled onto her stomach as she continued to stare up at Eddard. As he tied on his robe, Eddard turned to look at Allyria, knowing what she was doing.

    He smiled, his eyes scanning her nude body before he looked her in the eyes once more, "If you don't put some clothes on, I can't promise I won't attack you again, love," He remarked, causing Allyria to smile mischievously.

"Please do," Allyria hummed, causing Eddard to quietly laugh at the tone she was using before he walked over to his table and sat in the chair.

"Oh, how you have changed from the girl you once were when we first met," Eddard commented as he smiled at his wife.

"In more ways than one," Allyria admitted softly, causing Eddard to turn to her with a puzzled look.

    He watched her closely, immediately noticing the way she rubbed a hand over her belly, "What, now? Are you entirely certain, my love?" he asked her in concern as he stood up and made his way over it.

Allyria turned to him, an uneasy look on her face when she didn't see any happiness in Eddard's eyes. "Are you angry with me?"

"Angry? How could I be angry with you? You're carrying my child!" Eddard resounded as he moved closer to Allyria. He knelt in front of her, gently cupping her face with his hands. Allyria looked Eddard in the eyes as he did with her, both of them staring at each other lovingly, "You're my queen, Allyria. You are the woman I love. I could never be angry."

   "It's crazy to think I have your little prince or princess inside me," Allyria admitted, a nervous smile on her face, "Perhaps one of each,"

"I don't believe I can handle another set of twins in my life," Eddard commented, causing them both to laugh at himself, Lyanna, Torrhen, and Joanna.

   Allyria smiled, gently kissing Eddard's hand as Eddard continued to look at her with such love and admiration, "I love you, Allyria. Do you hear me?" He told her and Allyria slowly looked him directly in the eyes once more, "I love you."

"As I love you," Allyria confessed and Eddard smiled.

"Oh, how much I'm going to miss you while I'm away." He admitted softly, a longing look on his face.

"Promise me you'll return," Allyria insisted, cupping Eddard's face in her small hands, "Promise you'll return to me and our child."

"I promise," Eddard replied without hesitation as Allyria wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer to her before they fell back onto the bed together, refusing to break the kiss.

______

     Unbeknownst to nearly everyone outside of the Riverlands, Lyanna had taken Harrenhal for her own after the Riverlords took it back from the Hightower forces.

  She ended up having it used by the Riverlords and the Knight of the Vales to place prisoners of war they had captured during those numerous battles they had had with the Reachmen.

At Harrenhal, a man ended up using a mallet to hammer a man's head on a spike. Numerous other prisoners were being held hostage in the courtyard by chains. Dozens of men, women, and even some children.

One of the Lannister soldiers were about to torture one of the prisoners when they suddenly froze, hearing horse's hooves beating on the ground.

They turned, watching as Lyanna rode in on her large white stallion with Ser Edric Dayne and Jaime Lannister, along a few other men.

Immediately after seeing her enter, Riverlands men, Knights of the Vale, and Lannister men all bowed.

She rode off to the side before climbing off her horse, frowning when she saw all the hostages grouped together. "What is this?" She asked the men, a puzzled look on her face.

"Apologies, Your Grace, we weren't expecting you for a few more days," One of the men answered in a calm tone.

"Clearly not," She muttered under her breath, letting out a small scoff.

She turned her head, noticing all the prisoners kneeling before her. She frowned, her eyes locking on a blonde woman with blue eyes, the only one who had the courage to look her in the eyes as she knelt. "Why aren't these prisoners in their cells?" She found herself asking her men, a confused look on her face.

"The cells are overflowing, Your Grace," One of her men answered in a calm tone.

"This lot won't be here long, Your Grace, you needn't worry," Another one added in and Lyanna knew he meant that they'd execute them, "We usually interrogate them and then just..." he trailed off, gesturing to killing them.

"Do you believe we are so well-manned that we are able to discard able people that could work and serve us in ways the others cannot just like that?" Lyanna asked coldly as she snapped her fingers.

She turned her head, locking eyes with the blonde woman who wasn't kneeling like the others were.

She turned away after a moment, walking over to the young man who was tied to a nearby chair. "You, ser. Do you have a trade?" She asked curiously and the man anxiously look up at her as he nodded, "What is it?"

"I-I'm a smith...M'lady," The man stammered and Lyanna narrowed her eyes at him.

"Your Grace," She corrected him, causing the man to give her a deeply puzzled look.

"W-What?" He asked her quietly and Lyanna remained calm.

"It's 'Your Grace'," She corrected, only to turn her head to see the girl from earlier still staring at her.

One of the men who she had spoken to earlier ended up noticing as well and was quick to retaliate. "What are you looking at!" He shouted at the girl who looked no older than twenty, striking her across the face before unsheathing his sword, "Kneel! Kneel, girl, or I'll make you wish you had."

"You'll do no such thing," Lyanna suddenly spoke up in a stern tone as she walked closer to the girl.

The girl forced herself to stand up straight. She used the back of her hand to wipe the blood that spilled from the newly-formed cut on her lip.

Lyanna went into the cloak she wore over her crimson and gold armor. She pulled out a handkerchief, holding it out to the girl.

The girl gave her a surprised look, clearly not expecting her to be so kind. She cautiously ended her hand out, taking the handkerchief from her grasp.

"Thank you," She softly told Lyanna, wiping her bleeding lip with it.

Within seconds, Lyanna had whipped her body around and backhanded the man who had laid a hand on the girl. The hit was so hard he stumbled back, nearly falling to the ground.

He gasped in shock, staring at Lyanna in disbelief as he felt his own lip begin to bleed.

Lyanna remained a calm expression, yet was still able to glare at the man. "Land a hand on one of the female prisoners like that again and I'll cut that hand off, understand?" She threatened him in a low tone and the man was quick to nod his head.

   Lyanna froze for a moment, noticing Jaime and Edric staring at her from afar, shocked by what he had done. "Make sure each of these men and women are given tasks. The men can work hard labor, give the woman clean clothes to wear and let them work as servants or kitchen maids," She explained, pausing for a moment, "And while you're at it, make sure they're all fed. They may be prisoners, but we're trying to prove that we're better than the enemy, not worse."

Lyanna was about to walk away, only to stop to turn to the woman she had defended against one of her men. "Come. You'll be my new handmaiden," She ordered and Jaime frowned in confusion when he heard her words.

New handmaiden?

She never had a handmaiden before. She wasn't Joanna. She had grown up wearing pants like her brothers. Her hair was always messy and she did all her daily chores herself. What was there for a handmaiden to do?

"Fuck," Jaime muttered under his breath, exchanging a look with Edric as they realized what the reason was.

____

Once arriving at her chambers at Harrenhal, Lyanna took a seat at her table, awaiting for the girl's return from getting dressed. Soon enough, the girl entered the room, looking uneasy.

Lyanna looked the girl up and down, noticing that the dress that had been given to her was far too big for it and barely fit her.

  Lyanna stood up, wasting no time pouring herself and the girl a glass of wine. "Your name is Leyla Hightower," She stated, causing the girl's eyes to widen, "Fourth daughter of Leyton Hightower, youngest sibling of Ser Edmyn and Arthur Hightower."

Lyanna smiled sightly, holding a glass of wine out to Leyla. "Your brother Edmyn is one of the people I care about most in this world. I've known him all my life. Your brother Arthur, however, beat me half to death numerous times and raped me every night for months."

"Princess Lyanna--" Leyla began to say, an uneasy look on her face.

"Queen Lyanna," She corrected her in a calm tone, waving the glass of wine slightly at her, "Would you like some wine?"

Leyla stared at Lyanna hesitantly. Lyanna smiled slightly, realizing Leyla was hesitant since she worried that the wine was poisoned. "If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already. Poison is the last way I'd think of killing anyone," Lyanna explained, taking a large sip of the glass she was offering to the girl.

Once Leyla noticed that Lyanna had no effects to drinking it, she made her way over to the Lannister girl.

She took it from Lyanna's grasp, an uneasy look on her face. "Arbor Gold," She informed Leyla, who eyed Lyanna's armor.

It was crimson and gold. Real gold.

"How did you pay for the armor you're wearing?" Leyla found herself asking, looking nervous, "A million gold dragons?"

Lyanna quietly chuckled, picking up her own glass of wine and taking a sip. "Oh, my armor is on the house, or the smith's house burns down," She commented and Leyla looked worried, "I'm kidding."

Leyla forced herself to laugh, despite feeling nervous. In truth, Lyanna was only half joking, but she wasn't going to admit that. Leyla was obviously beyond terrified.

"How does a daughter of the infamous Leyton Hightower end up in the Riverlands, a known war zone all throughout Westeros?" Lyanna found herself asking Leyla out of curiosity.

"I was here when the Riverlords took back Harrenhal," Leyla informed Lyanna in a calm tone, "I've been here since my father took Harrenhal in the first place. He brought me here with him, having the feeling he'd have the chance of marrying me off. When he heard of what was happening at Casterly Rock, he rushed there and left me here."

"To fend for yourself," Lyanna concluded and Leyla avoided eye contact as she nodded her head, "Your father was an evil man."

"And your mother was an evil woman," Leyla retorted, causing Lyanna's expression to suddenly turn cold.

"Careful, my lady. I've spared your life. I can easily take it," Lyanna warned Leyla in a stern tone, yet the girl surprisingly didn't look intimidated.

"I'd expect nothing less of Her Grace," Leyla replied and Lyanna narrowed her eyes at her, knowing for a fact she was up to something.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Lyanna really slapped that guy tho 😂😂

Rickard and Edric reunited ❤️