With quick steps, the young princess had hurried through the almost dark lower corridors and had gathered everything necessary. Surprisingly, she had not met anyone, which was also her good fortune.

She quickly realized that there were hardly any used rooms down here. Many rooms were empty or were used by maesters or as storage rooms. Edith even found the old treatment room of Maester Ludwig, which was not far from Maester Arwin's room.

She put everything she needed into the pockets of her dress and quickly made her way back to Colin and Arwin.

"What took you so long? Edith?!" Colin looked at her somewhat reproachfully and waved his arms wildly in front of her. He pointed at himself, at Arwin, at Edith, and then at the dead Ludwig. "You just went away and left us alone with him! We didn't even know if you were coming back!"

Arwin also seemed quite nervous and his black hair stood wildly off his head.

Edith had a hard time suppressing a disappointed sigh and her grip on the blanket in her hand tightened.

"Colin...calm down, please." She asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You should know that I won't leave you, that I won't leave the two of you, in the lurch." It hurt a little that Colin thought she wouldn't come back, but in his place, she surely would have thought the same. "Pack your treatment bag, please, Arwin. We're leaving."

"'Leavin'? Where are we going?" wanted Arwin to know in a shaky voice. Again he played with his glasses on his nose.

"To my chambers. We still have a treatment appointment, but before that we need to get this done and get out of here real quick." She explained in a confident voice and knelt beside the dead body.

She had stolen another blanket from Maester Ludwig's treatment room, which she placed under the body with the help of the two men.

"I've been sneaking through the rooms down here and haven't run into anyone. We must try to get Ludwig to his own room." Told the young woman with the brownish hair her plan, tying the two blankets together so that the corpse was completely enveloped. She never wanted to see his face again, especially after what she had done to his head and neck. "I'll be on the lookout for that."

The two men exchanged a quick glance, but then nodded in agreement to the princess. She seemed to be the only one with a plan and they had no choice but to trust it. The situation was already bad enough and they had little left to lose.

Colin reached for one end while Arwin grabbed the other end of the blanket. Together they lifted the old maester up as Edith looked out the door and gave a sign. With Ludwig in their arms, they followed the princess, trying to make hardly any noise. Ludwig had not been a slender man, but it was not too difficult for Colin, who was more trained and athletic than Arwin, for the latter had trouble holding the body up by its feet and carrying it.

Edith would have liked to help, but on the one hand she knew that Colin would not let her and on the other hand she was disgusted to have to touch this bad man again.

It wasn't a long walk to Maester Ludwig's treatment rooms, but it felt like an eternity until they finally arrived at their destination. The two men laid the dead man on the cot and again pulled the blanket around him sensibly so that Edith would not have to see him again. Then the two turned to the young woman and waited for an order.

In the meantime, Edith had taken out the items she had collected earlier from the pockets of her dress. Edith placed the candles around the room and lit them, then went to the couch and thus to the deceased maester.

One last time she exchanged a look with the two men and without hesitation, she took a match and lit the blankets in which Ludwig was wrapped. She also gave Colin and Arwin matches and together they lit everything in the room. Finally Edith opened the window so that air and oxygen could come in and the fire would spread faster.

This all happened within a few minutes and as quickly as possible they left the burning room and went back to Arwin's room to get his bag with his treatment things and finally the three of them went to the private rooms of the princess.

Since they had left Arwin's room to dispose of the light and finally set it on fire, all the way here to Edith's chambers, no one had said a word. But they didn't need to, because they understood each other without saying a word.

The whole action had gone without communication and everyone had somehow known what to do and it was almost as if they had done it before. Almost.

Edith felt it was only extremely fair to burn Ludwig's body with his rooms. "He had tried the same thing with me... He had set my room on fire at night and wanted me to burn, but I wasn't there when it happened..." Edith began to tell quietly. In her own chambers she finally felt safe and dared to speak openly.

"I heard about it... I think everyone heard about it." Sighed the young maester with round glasses.

"Well, it was unmistakable, everyone was talking about it." Said Colin sarcastically, leaning wearily against the wooden door. "Sorry... at least now we know who was behind it."

"True, but it's not over yet...this is just the beginning." Sighed Edith and sat down on the chair in front of her mirror. She, too, looked tired. "I really appreciate what you guys did for me today. I don't even know how to ever show you this..." she reflected.

"We already had this conversation at noon today, Edith. It's all good, I don't want anything." Colin smiled honestly at her and nodded in agreement.

He was impressed with how much she cared about the two men, yet Edith was a good woman with a loving heart. No one would be better suited to lead Westeros than she, but she was not aware of that until now. But Colin knew it and he wanted to see his friend on the throne more than anything else. Then it would and will have been all worth it.

"I don't want to be greedy now, but... but I would have a wish." Arwin interfered in the conversation. He stood in the room with his bag in his hand, looking lost as he stood there.

"Tell me." Demanded the young woman with the brownish hair. "I'll do everything I can to make it happen."

"I-I want to evolve and learn more...I want to be the first maester and not a lower young maester who is not trusted with anything. I know my craft and I want the chance to prove it." He muttered quickly and quietly, so that the other two had trouble understanding him. "That's too much to ask, isn't it? Too selfish... sorry, forget it..."

"No, Arwin. It's a good wish, there's nothing selfish about it! I think it's really great, and I'll arrange it once I have more power." Edith smiled encouragingly at him and got up from her chair and walked toward him. She would have liked to put a hand on his shoulder, but she didn't since she knew he was quite skittish.

"We're team blue, aren't we? I'm sure we can do it!" Colin stood with the two of them and had the biggest encouraging smile on his lips Edith had ever seen.

"Yeah, if we just stick together." Agreed Edith her sworn guard and smiled as well. "You should tell someone the great news, Colin?" she then suggested, because she instantly had to think of another member in her team. At least she hoped Harwin would be on her side and not Rhaenyra's when the time came.

Colin nodded. "Yes, yes you are right. I will go to him in a moment." The knight placed a hand on Edith's shoulder briefly before turning toward the door.

"Colin?" she asked after all, stopping him in his tracks.

"Yes?"

"If anyone should ask... we've been here all afternoon and Arwin has been examining my pregnancy and showing me exercises for pain while you've been standing outside my door, okay?" she said her made-up lie, looking first at Colin and then at Arwin.

The mood was suddenly more serious than it had been a moment ago. Nevertheless, they both nodded and agreed with the story. They had no other choice and that was the safest excuse.

"Take care of yourself, Ser Colin. I'm sure the fire has already been discovered." Advised the princess to her knight and then nodded to him as well. "You should rest after this."

"Are you sure? Don't you need me?" asked the man with brown hair.

She shook her head slightly. "No, I'm fine. Prince Aemond will be here soon." She answered him.

Only now she thought of her husband again and she became a little uneasy inside. She would have to lie to him about today, too. She would have to suppress her feelings and thoughts and would not be allowed to tell him about it.

The couple got along better, but she didn't know what Aemond would say about her first murder. Surely he would look at her differently and treat her differently. Surely he would also keep her imprisoned in the chambers so she couldn't harm herself or anyone else.

"Okay, thank you." Smiled Colin and then left the princess' chambers.

Briefly Edith closed her eyes, still thinking about what will happen from now on. "Let's get started before my husband gets here." She sighed exhaustedly and looked at the young maester.

The latter looked at her with wide eyes. "Do you really want to do this now?" Arwin couldn't really believe that Edith could still be willing to do it now. "Princess...a lot has happened today. You might want to get some rest."

"I don't need to rest. I'm wide awake." She opined, shaking her head slightly.

"That's not a good sign." Arwin set his bag down and walked toward her. Carefully, he put his fingers around her eyes to widen them a bit so he could get a better look at her. "You were almost killed today, you and your child...again...you really should rest for your health." He advised her worriedly.

"I'll come back tomorrow, okay? We'll catch up then, princess." He took out of his pocket the can of gel he had freshly prepared. The reason why he had left the room and the reason why Ludwig could get so close to Edith without being stopped.

He blamed himself greatly, because he should not have just left. Not as long as Ser Colin wasn't back. But afterwards one is always wiser and there was nothing he could do about it. Colin also blamed himself the same as Arwin and it was hard for both of them. But at the same time, the whole situation had welded the three of them together and brought them closer.

Perhaps without Ludwig, and without Rhaenyra, they would not have become so close. And Edith would never have realized how dangerous it really was for her. No one could help her here, neither the Greens nor the Blacks. She could only help herself.

"You're right, thank you Maester Arwin..." Even though she was wide awake, she felt exhausted and he was really right. She should take care of herself and her unborn child now, to be able to process what had happened. "Really...thank you."

"Not for this." Smiled the young man, handing her the can of gel and pushing his glasses back up on his nose. "I'll send up some food and drink for you, and I'll take a look at the situation downstairs... there's certainly pure chaos going on." Arwin laughed nervously.

"Probably. Tell me about it tomorrow, will you?" she asked him.

Arwin nodded. "I will. See you tomorrow, Princess Edith." He then said goodbye and headed for the door.

"Until tomorrow, Maester Arwin." Replied Edith, smiling slightly in farewell as he left the room. As soon as he was gone Edith began to undress. The dress felt much too tight and there were still some blood splashes on the fabric, which no one was allowed to see, but to be honest she didn't know how to get out.

Edith stood there dressed only in her undergarment when sometime later the door was opened by a maid. The young princess was startled, for she had been so much in thought that she had forgotten the time. She was too tormented by thoughts of what had happened. She didn't know how she would ever forget.

"Good evening, Princess Edith. Maester Arwin sent me." The young maid greeted Edith with a smile and placed the tray on the table in front of the large mirror.

"I know, thank you so much. That's really kind." She answered honestly and immediately took the cup with the warm tea and drank it. She hadn't realized how thirsty she was until now.

As if automatically, the maid went to Edith's dress, which she had carelessly left on the floor. Carefully she picked it up and folded it until she discovered the few stains. "Princess! Has something happened?" the girl asked anxiously. She seemed to be younger than Edith and only now she realized that she didn't know the blonde-haired girl at all.

"Oh that's not my blood." Edith said quickly without thinking and then startled when it struck her. "Maester Arwin cut himself with one of his treatment items when he was here earlier... you know he's a bit clumsy." She then added.

The young maid seemed to believe her and just nodded. "I'll take it and clean it." She informed the princess.

"What is your name? I've never seen you here before." Edith asked curiously. She was sitting in her chair by now, eating from the bread that was on the tray.

"My name is Anna, Princess." The blonde promised her and made a respectful curtsy.

"What happened to my old maid?" wanted Edith to know from Anna. "I like having new faces around, please don't take it the wrong way, Anna. I'm just curious." She quickly explained herself from seeing the wide eyes of the maid.

"Your old maid is my aunt, princess. She is unfortunately discerned and can't fulfill her duties right now..." the blonde girl with the perfect braid told, her head tilted respectfully. "...I'm actually one of the housemaids, but I've been filling in for her...I hope this is okay, Princess? I can of course find you a real maid..."

"No, it's fine." Said the princess quickly. Edith smiled gently at the girl and shook her head. "Your secret is safe with me, don't worry. I'm not demanding either." Revealed Edith to her in a whisper, making Anna laugh.

"Thank you, Princess!" Anna returned her smile and curtsied once more.

Edith would have preferred to say something that Anna didn't need to be so posh in front of her, but somehow she liked it. It was the first time she didn't feel uncomfortable and enjoyed having someone look up to her. Now what would it feel like to have a whole team, an army, behind her?

How would it feel to sit on the Iron Throne?

She cringed at her own thoughts, for she had never had them before, but the longer she thought about it, the more she liked the idea.

"I know it's late, but would you prepare a bath for me, Anna?" she asked the younger girl.

"Of course, I'll be right back."

Anna, her new maid, was a neat young woman. Her blonde hair lay perfectly and not a strand fell out of her braid. Her clothes were as smooth as her skin and spared of all blemishes.

This young girl was far too innocent and deserved better than working at the Red Keep. Edith could only try to make Anna as comfortable as possible, after all the princess herself was not very demanding and certainly more pleasant company than some of the other ladies here at court.

It was not long until Anna came back and filled the tub with hot water and herbs. Edith quickly got into the tub and lost herself in her own thoughts, so that she did not even notice how Anna left the room and she herself finally fell asleep.

~~~

The water she was lying in was already cold when she woke up again, but she didn't feel the cold. It was as if her whole body was numb from today's events. And as much as she wanted to forget this matter, she could not.

Probably they had already discovered the fire and had been able to subdue it, finding the burnt remains of the old maester. Edith would love to know what was left of him. He's no Targaryen, so surely there wouldn't be much left of him except his bones. Unless the fire was discovered in time and they were able to salvage the dead remains.

Edith became dizzy at the thought. She was very afraid of what would happen if it came out that she was his murderer. She didn't even want to imagine it, even though she had only defended herself. All she could do now was hope and pray that no one would suspect Colin or Arwin.

Ludwig's death was only the beginning. It was the beginning of something very big, something of Edith's own making - her own plan.

She had racked her brains for days and nights and had terrible headaches as she searched for a possible plan, a solution, to prevent a war. All she ever wanted to do was to help her family and make them proud.

It had been Princess Rhaenyra's plan to place Edith in King's Landing and marry her off to Aemond. Edith felt as if the fog in her mind had finally disappeared and she could think more clearly than ever. It had never been Edith's task from Rhaenyra, since the young woman would never have been able to prevent a war between the Greens and the Blacks on her own. Without help the young girl was left here and now she finally understood that it had been Rhaenyra's intuition from the beginning - she wanted to get rid of Edith.

Had Ludwig perhaps been right when he said before his death that Edith had become dangerous to the heiress? That was the only thing she didn't really understand yet. Edith was still so young, almost a child. She had loved Rhaenyra and looked up to her, she had been a role model for her and had never said a bad word about her or done anything that could have made Rhaenyra mad at her.

The thought that her parents knew about this pained her. Did they even know about the actual plan from the heiress? It could not be, she did not want to imagine it. Her beloved mother would never have allowed it, and certainly not her father. They would never have let their firstborn daughter go freely, they had done it only because they trusted Rhaenyra - just as Edith had trusted her.

Then she realized that her parents and her siblings were in danger in Dragonstone. What would Rhaenyra do with her uncle and half-sister? What was Rhaenyra willing to do?

Edith really needed to find a way to talk to Princess Rhaenys alone. The older princess had been at the Red Keep for several days now, but had not sought Edith out. Did she perhaps know about Rhaenyra? Was that why she was here?

Even though everything seemed clearer now about her so-called task here, which was actually none, Edith now had even more questions, which puzzled her.

Finally she got out of the cold water and took a linen towel. She dried her body and tied her wet hair into a neat braided pigtail before finally putting on her nightgown.

At the same moment, the doorknob turned and the door to the room opened. Edith winced and tightly gripped the soft fabric around her body. Her heart was pounding hard and did not calm down when she recognized her husband Aemond. Too many bad thoughts had flashed through her mind in those few moments.

"Why aren't you in bed yet? It's in the middle of the night." The man with the long silver hair did not greet his wife and walked past her to a dresser. Aemond took off his belt with the daggers first, followed by his leather clothes and shoes.

Edith stood frozen in the room, as she had done before when she was waiting for Anna. She hadn't even realized that it was already in the middle of the night. How long had she lain in the cold tub thinking and napping? She didn't know.

"I couldn't sleep, so I asked Anna to draw me a bath. I guess I lost track of time." She explained to herself. It was only partly a lie, she had really asked Anna for it, but not because she couldn't sleep.

"Who is Anna?" he wanted to know from her. His brow formed slight creases as he asked the question.

"My new maid." She answered really honestly now. "She is the niece of my old maid, who has fallen ill. Anna is doing a good job."

Aemond said nothing more in reply. It was obvious that he was not interested in his wife's maid or in any other servant here. If Edith were not his wife and a princess with the right to this luxury, he would be against all this stuff.

The man was the first to lie down in the made bed and cover himself. Only then he took off his eye patch.

Edith's gaze was not on her husband's beautiful body as he lay down in bed, but on something on her dressing table. She could hardly suppress the trembling of her hands as she reached for the small can of blue gel.

The gel that had almost cost her her life, but that was her own fault. She had sent Ser Colin away first, and then Maester Arwin to prepare the blue gel. Thus she had given Ludwig an opportunity and a once-in-a-lifetime chance to complete his own task. pathetically, Edith would like to know what Rhaenyra had or would have paid him for this job.

With the can in her hand, she now also approached the bed and lay down in the soft blankets and pillows. "Maester Arwin gave me this for my belly. Your mother and sister may have used it, too." She told him with a thoughtful look at the lid.

Aemond took the can out of her hand, opened the lid and looked at the blue gel in there. "And what is this supposed to do?" he asked. He seemed more interested in this question than in who Anna was. Or maybe he just cared.

"It's supposed to be relaxing and supportive of the belly, it's mainly for my skin on my belly." Edith didn't quite know how to answer his question.

Arwin had listed the benefits to her, but she had forgotten most of it due to the stress of the last few hours. Nevertheless, she would use it, because she trusted the young man with the glasses and she had already seen this gel on Helaena.

Critically, Aemond looked at the gel and smelled it. In fact, it was odorless. "The queen and Helaena also used this?" he asked again.

Edith nodded in confirmation.

"Pull up your nightgown." Ordered the man with silver hair to his wife, his voice sounding too commanding and so seductive at the same time.

Of course, Edith pulled her nightgown up to her breasts, exposing her small belly, then looked at him as he rose to kneel.

Amond's long fingers took some of the gel, which he then spread on Edith's belly and then gently stroked it, spreading the gel evenly.

In moments like these, Edith could hardly believe her happiness. The marriage between them had not had a good start. It was a forced marriage and the two had been enemies since childhood. She had even taken one of his eyes and yet now he sat next to her with a slight smile on his lips while he caressed her belly. The belly in which his first child was growing. He actually forced himself to suppress his smile, but he didn't manage it, Edith saw it anyway.

Sometimes she imagined that he felt more for her than he would ever admit, or even loved her. Or at least felt the same affection Edith felt. But she didn't know what that really felt like. Edith had believed that she loved Aegon and that he loved her, but in the end she had only been wrong about this again.

She had seen the love of her parents, which was so strong and had endured so much no matter how far apart they had been.

And exactly such an endless love Edith also wished for - now more than ever.

"You said it's already in the middle of the night... where have you been so long?" she asked quietly, but curious and yet a bit afraid.

"It's not important now, my dear." He answered, avoiding her gaze as he closed the lid of the can, but still continued to caress her belly afterwards. "Close your eyes and try to sleep."

Edith knew immediately that Aemond knew about the fire and she felt sick again.

"Now you have to tell me about it. I-"

"No, I don't have to." He quickly interrupted her, and with his sentence, he also finished his stroking and pulled her nightgown back down before covering her with the blanket.

The princess bit her lip. She knew she had asked too much again and Aemond would only refuse to say anything more now, but Edith had to at least try. She had to know what he knew!

"But I ask you this, Aemond. I am your wife and I want to know what is happening in my home, in my country." With her big blue violet eyes she looked at him pleadingly. "Did something happen? Should I be afraid?" she added, fearing she had revealed too much.

She had never called the Red Keep her home, nor had she ever seen King's Landing as her city, Aemond noticed, and became thoughtful. Even though Edith had now been here longer than planned and was beginning to make more connections here, she said it only to convince him.

It was one of the few moments when Aemond actually hesitated to answer, that actually happened quite rarely, because he never minced his words.

"Maester Ludwig is dead." He finally answered.

"Dead? As in..." Edith dared not speak further for fear of being exposed. Thick knots had already formed in her throat.

"Burned." Said Aemond. " Deceased, maimed, gone. You don't have to worry about him anymore."

Edith's heart raced far too fast in her chest and her fingers clawed into her soft nightgown under the covers. "Burned to death? Where?" she stammered uncertainly.

"My dear, don't worry about it now. It's all taken care of. It's done now." Aemond eyed his wife with a questioning look. She seemed not only uncertain, but changed, but he did not yet know what it was about her that seemed so different.

Done. It sounded so final, and it was. Edith had seen to that herself.

"Where." Edith repeated without responding to his statement, because it was far from over.

"Edith..."

"Aemond."

"Mhm." He sighed almost annoyed, but then answered her anyway, suppressing another sigh. "Daeron and I had just come from a council sitting when we were summoned. A servant discovered the fire in the old maester's rooms, however nothing could be saved."

"Did you see him? The corpse?" She still didn't have her voice under control, unfortunately, so she trembled slightly as she spoke.

"There was enough of him left to be able to identify him." Answered her husband honestly. His gaze was still fixed on his wife, who did not look at him, instead looking at the bedspread around her body. "I hope he suffered, although it's unfair. If only I had found him sooner, I would not have left him to die so easily."

Edith swallowed hard. "Do you know where he's been the last few weeks?" she wanted to know.

Aemond would have liked to give her an answer, but he couldn't. He had failed. Should have protected his wife from the beginning, but had started far too late. He should have protected her from the moment she arrived here in King's Landing, even though they were still enemies and not even engaged.

Since the poisoning and the fire, he had guilt deep inside him, which he didn't talk about. He generally didn't like to talk about his own feelings.

Together they could have prevented so many things... or made them worse? But if things had turned out differently, the two would certainly not be as close as they are now. Aemond had learned what it was like to have someone by his side for good and it became his dependence. He was happy to return to Edith after a long day, even if it was the middle of the night and she was often already asleep.

But Edith was there. And soon his first child would be there waiting for him to return with Edith.

"Not yet, but I'll look into it, I've promised you." He repeated his promise. He really wanted to find out what the reasons for Ludwig's actions were, because he owed it to her. At least he was now dead and could no longer touch his Edith.

But he did not know that she already knew the reasons for Ludwig's actions.

"I appreciate that very much, thank you, my dear." She said and smiled softly at him, but it was not a real smile.

She just wanted to tell him. She felt the need to confide in him, because she needed to talk to someone about the new findings and events, but she couldn't.

Although Aemond had already ended the lives of others, she was afraid to tell him that she too had crossed this invisible threshold.

She was not as innocent as she was when she came here and yet he needed to know that she was about to change and evolve. She was about to overthrow the black and prevent the possible coronation of Aegon, because she needed every support she could get and especially that of her husband.

But would he be willing to turn his back on his family?

"And do you already know who it was?"

"Why do you care so much?" he suspiciously interrupted her. He did not believe her smiling and her many questions made him feel inexplicable. Slowly he got assumptions, but he didn't want to interpret too much into it.

"He did so much to me... I just want to know. " She said unsubstantiated while shrugging her shoulders. "You don't?"

"Don't worry, we'll find out." He answered her.

Edith nodded slightly. "Maybe you were right and now is not the right time to talk about it." The day had taken a lot of strength from her and since she had bathed she felt exhausted. Her body also ached from today's exertion, after all she had more or less fought against Ludwig.

"Mmm, we really should go to sleep now." Aemond blew out the candles by his side of the bed and Edith blew out the candles on her side until both were in total darkness. "Sleep well."

"Good night, Aemond."

But despite the tiredness, neither of them fell asleep immediately. Everyone was left to their own thoughts and the darkness and the sudden silence between the two only encouraged the many thoughts all the more.

***

Edith got her first revenge
and many more will follow!!

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See you in the next chapter,
have a good time♡