26 Intrigue

Jaime

When the Queen Mother pulled him aside and tasked him to look into Lord Stark's bastard son, he was somewhat confused by the request. What would one of the most powerful individuals in the realm want with some northerner's baseborn son?

He'd eyed the boy when he saw the Stark children approach the practice yard and found it very hard not to stare, there was a tall, rugged elegance about the lad that wasn't very common amongst any of the Stark's he'd seen in Winterfell. And he was clearly easy on the eye if the small, buxom woman that had clearly been flirting with him was anything to go by.

Those genes definitely weren't from his father, the only thing he seemed to inherit from the chilly warden of the north was his colouring and his eyes, and even they were a lighter shade of grey compared to the Stark patriarch, eyes that flared with intensity when looking straight into them.

Whoever the mother was must have been some woman, not only had she passed on some of her beauty on to her son, she'd also managed to turn the head of the good and honourable Lord Stark.

He looked around as he followed Jon back to the northern camp, people eyeing them and whispering about the juicy gossip that he no doubt expected to spread like wildfire, Ser Jaime Lannister of the Kingsguard bested in the practice yard by Ned Stark's bastard.

And Jaime couldn't find it in his heart to dispute that fact, the boy was clinical with a blade, sharp and precise with his strikes, impenetrable and calculated with his defence and response.

Ser Arthur Dayne was the best man he'd ever come against in the practice yard, was being the important word in that sentence. He legitimately had doubts now after what had just occurred just a few moments ago. What was even more depressing was that he was almost sure that Jon had been holding back somewhat against him.

He felt humbled and that was a very rare occurrence for him.

Looks like the old white bull will be successful in finding new blood for the order for when he's gone.

There was a childlike excitement at the thought of Jon going up against some of his brothers, mainly the Sword of the Morning, whether it be in a friendly spar or in the grand melee itself.

At this moment in time though, he was more interested in what Jon had to show him. If it was some sort of proof that his uncle was alive, that he was out there somewhere then Jon Snow would become his best friend, Addam would just have to deal with that change.

If it was some sort of trick then he would make the boy regret getting on the wrong side of house Lannister, either him or his father would see to that, no problem.

Jon went to get his swords back from Jory after their chat, the fact that he carried two swords raised some questions but he kept them to himself. Jon told the rest of his siblings that he was showing him something and to not wait around for him, to the little sister's annoyance. He chuckled when he saw the glare Jon was shot by the little lady. Bran was speechless when they approached and hadn't uttered a word even after they'd set off towards camp. The boy clearly couldn't believe what had just happened and he wasn't the only one with some of the looks he received on the way here.

He'd lost a spar, not grown a second head. He thought exasperatingly.

They reached Jon's tent but not without receiving some comments, mainly from the biggest culprit in more ways than one.

"Haha, I see you've harpooned yourself a proper pretty one there eh Snow, HA!" Greatjon Umber bellowed out to the amusement of the rest of the camp "You have to be gentle with him, don't want him walking funny during the melee HAHA!" Greatjon japed as the rest of the camp grew with laughter.

Before he could retort, Jon was replying to the giant of a man "Sod off ya daft cunt!" He shouted back at the man "I'll make you walk funny if you don't bugger off!" He finished as the Lord of Last Hearth chuckled in response. Clearly the two of them being friends due to the fact the Greatjon hadn't come over and thumped him.

That's If he could even do that. He mused. Jon seemed to bring up more questions than answers at the moment. Queen Rhaella was definitely right to investigate.

Jon chuckled to himself as he opened the flap of his tent and held it open for him to walk in. It was big enough for a lad of Jon's size, enough room for him to kip down and adequate space for his belongings. He instantly scanned the tent in the hopes of seeing this elusive evidence of his uncle's survival, in the corner he spotted a pile of furs covered in little white hairs that seemed to have been fashioned into some sort of nest or bed for a dog.

Probably one of those direwolves that had been whispered about. He presumed.

In the other corner closer to what he assumed was Jon's bed was a couple of bags, bags Jon was moving over to.

"He's happy by the way. Doesn't half make me want to hit him sometimes though." Jon said.

"Who?" He replied, furrowed brow in confusion "Lord Umber?"

Jon shook his head "Gerion, your uncle." He answered. Jon chuckled to himself "He took the piss out of me so much but I could always tell it was out of love, he's a good man that uncle of yours."

It sounds just like the man that had disappeared all those years ago, a man that him and Tyrion were so incredibly fond of, always the first person to tell them if they were being a dick, always japing about things he really shouldn't have been japing about. The only man who has ever managed to get a chuckle out of their father.

He wanted to believe him so much but he couldn't without proof.

He cleared his throat as he took a seat on the ground "Where is he?" He asked as Jon started fiddling with a strap that held one of his bags tightly shut.

"On an island called Shikoku, in a city called Kōchi." Jon responded.

And where the fuck was that?

He asked what he was thinking and Jon answered, the answer turned out to be very unexpected.

"A few months out by boat, west of Westeros." He answered nonchalantly like it was something completely sane to say.

He shook his head, he didn't know what game he was playing "You're lying. Nobody is stupid enough to sail west of Westeros, and even if they are, they don't come back." He said. Something came to him as well "In fact, my uncle Gerion didn't even sail west, he sailed east, through the smoking sea of Valyria on his bat shit crazy quest." he explained further.

Jon stopped messing with the strap on his bag and stroked his beard, looking thoughtful "I always did wonder how he ended up where he did. He told me he sailed through the Jade Sea, past the Manticore Isles and even past Asshai before passing out from hunger sailing up the Saffron Straits. Told me he'd rather die from starvation than to some freaky witch torture that they do in that area of the world. The blokes from Kōchi boarded his ship in the middle of the ocean and towed him back to shore, he woke up in a foreign land with foreign people who spoke a foreign language to him and he was scared shitless. Turned out they were decent people and nursed him back to health, he decided to stay, learn the culture and make a home for himself, the rest, as they say, is history." Jon explained before going back to his bag and working on the straps.

He just sat there in amazement.

The fuck had he just been told?

Something didn't add up though "But you said you sailed west? He went east." He questioned.

Jon chuckled as he finally pulled away one of the straps "Yeah I always wondered about that, even Gerion was stumped when I asked him about it," he said as he shrugged his shoulders "Maybe it's something to investigate at some point, I wouldn't mind taking a little adventure." Jon finished with a laugh.

He's mad, that's the only explanation. He thought and told him so.

"You're mad, fucking insane! What made you think that I'd believe any of that what you've just said? None of what you've said proves anything you've said about my uncle!" He growled out as Jon finally got into his bag before hauling a black leather scabbard out of it, a sword within its confines.

He grabbed the hilt of the blade, Jaime noticed the pommel of it was made of gold, in the shape of a lion's head. His eye's narrowed at that, his heartrate picking up. The slow unsheathing of the sword revealed the smoky patterns of that elusive and sort after treasure, a metal of such rarity. The solid gold lion's head on the pommel, the polished Valyrian steel, his eye's widened in realisation and excitement.

"Maybe this is enough evidence?" Jon questioned with a smirk on his face.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing, the sword, his uncle's survival, the mad as fuck stories, they were all...real!?

He looked at Jon with a look of disbelief, a smile blooming on his face as he eyed the sword up and down.

It was exquisite.

Jon handed it to him and he gripped it like it was made of glass, the balance was perfect, the steel was perfect, everything was perfect about it. He made Jon jump slightly when he sheathed it back in its scabbard in a flash.

He looked at this boy, no, that wasn't fair, this man, he looked at this man with determination. He could kiss Queen Rhaella for suggesting this if it wasn't for the fact that it would probably cost him his head in the process.

Jon was looking back at him with a quirked eyebrow at the determined look Jaime was giving him.

He cleared his throat,

"I think you and me need to go and pay my father a visit." He said.

Tywin

"Leave me." He said to the steward as he sat down at his table inside his tent, a cocoon of red and gold.

He sighed in annoyance at what the boy had just told him, trouble between the Clegane brothers was the last thing he needed, they'd only just arrived and set up camp around the grounds of Harrenhal. He thought sending Sandor to Storm's End in service of his daughter and her brood would cool tension between the two, especially with how many years it had been.

But no, they were already butting heads and Tyrion's warning about bringing the two of them together having the potential for trouble was coming to fruition. He shook his head and gritted his teeth at the thought of seeing that smug grin on his face the next time he saw him.

It also meant that if Sandor had been spotted then the Stormlands had made good time and arrived shortly after them. It also meant he'd be graced by his daughter and his insufferable grandson.

His steward returned to his tent and spoke up "Mi lord, your son is here to see you. He's brought a guest." The boy announced.

He gritted his teeth even harder as a whoosh of air escaped his nostrils in the attempt to calm his ire. This was all he needed, speak of the devil and he shall appear, it was like the gods were mocking him.

"Send Tyrion in, the quicker this is over the better." He replied to his steward as he poured himself a goblet of Arbour.

"Mi lord, Ser Jaime wishes to see you, not Lord Tyrion. I apologise for the confusion." His steward explained. The boy knew his place and apologised for his mistake.

Somebody was trying to please him.

He then realised what the boy had just said.

"Send him in." He replied as the young steward bowed and left the tent to retrieve his son.

He'd not seen Jaime in nearly a year, the last time was when he visited the capital for business reasons. The boy was still in love with his Kingsguard vows enough to refuse his offer, to hand his resignation in to his King and return home where he belonged in preparation to take over when he passed. It was an empty wish he admitted, his idiotic son was dead set on wasting his life away guarding the King.

His eldest son and heir had chosen to be a glorified bodyguard over becoming warden of the west, and it was always a source of rage for him.

The steward returned with his son, decked out in his white and gold armour, and a pristine white cloak of his precious Kingsguard, a tool of protection and nothing more.

He felt his ire rise at the thought of that.

The second man who followed his son in was a different story, he'd never seen or met him before. Intrigue bubbled as he wondered why his son, a member of the Kingsguard was presenting this man to him.

His son nodded in his direction as he sternly looked at him, the man next to him however, decided to look around the tent with interest before locking eyes with him and nodding eventually.

He already disliked this boy.

Jaime cleared his throat "Father, good to see you again." His son said to him as he carried on looking at the stranger in his tent. His colouring and clothing were obviously northern but a closer look showed something more. The boy had a couple of inches on his son to his petty annoyance, he had a powerful frame which screamed warrior, a neatly trimmed beard that covered his features but not enough to tell that there were more than northern roots to this boy. The eye's though, the colour of liquid silver were staring right back at him, refusing to break contact with his emerald gaze first. He was both annoyed and impressed by his confidence.

Either confidence or stupidity, it was too early to say without him opening his mouth.

He broke eye contact and looked at his son but didn't miss the slight upturn of the northerner's mouth. "Jaime." He nodded. "And who is your friend?" He asked as he looked back into those silver eyes.

"This is Jon, Jon Snow, Lord Starks son." His son replied with a smile.

Ned Stark's bastard. So this was the runaway son, he didn't even know that he'd been found, the last he heard about him was in the raven he'd received from King's Landing asking to keep a look out for the bastard of Winterfell. It was safe to say that piece of parchment had been thrown into the fireplace without a second thought.

But now the boy was approaching him as he stood from his chair, the years away from his home hadn't been unkind to boy that was for certain. Snow held his hand out and Tywin grasped it as he looked him dead in the eyes. A strong grip and determined stare the boy had.

He didn't know if he was trying to intimidate him or impress him but he refused to allow either of those things happen. Snow released his grip first and turned back to Jaime.

It was his turn to smirk. Two could play at that game , boy.

The smirk slowly fell from his face when he realised he'd been sucked into a childish battle of wits, and by the slight smirk Snow had on his face when he stood back next to Jaime, that was the plan all along.

He didn't know whether to be impressed or annoyed. Again, he refused to even choose as Jaime looked back and forth between him and Snow.

"Out with it then. I know you've come here for business not pleasure so let me hear it." He said to Jaime as he returned to his seat. Jaime sighed but nodded as he lifted a scabbard that had been hefted over his shoulder, in it was a sword with a very interesting pommel.

The sword was placed on the table in front of him and his eye's narrowed as he took in its appearance. He looked up at Jaime, at Snow and then back at his son.

"And what is this?" He asked Jaime as his eyes dropped back down to the sword, the gold pommel in the shape of a lion was an interesting touch but a new sword wasn't at the top of his priorities list, especially one the size of the greatsword laid in front of him.

It was Snow who spoke up before Jaime could and his words were shocking to say the least "Compliments of your brother Gerion, he told me to say hello from him too, by the way."

He looked back up the boy with fire in his eyes as his nostrils flared, it seemed to have zero effect on the bastard as he growled out his response.

"And what is that supposed to mean, hmm?" He said. The fact that Jaime hadn't looked shocked or angry after the boy had opened his mouth spelt out the obvious but he refused to accept that until he got to the bottom of it.

Snow grinned, a grin he really wanted to wipe off his face. Jaime was grinning as well as he nodded towards the sword "Unsheathe it, that'll give you a good idea what he's talking about." His son explained.

He carried on looking at Jaime, waiting for a sign of anything but the grin stayed on his son's face. Jaime nodded back at the sword and with one last look at Snow, he looked back at the sword.

Tywin Lannister was never excited, never impatient but he felt a drop of the two as he slowly unsheathed the sword. The more leather that slipped away from the steel of the blade, the more eager he grew to pull away the rest with zeal. The smoky ripples in the steel were presented to him more and more as the scabbard slowly pulled away from it.

Valyrian Steel.

The scabbard was fully separated from its blade and he looked up and down the treasure with a blank face void of emotion. It wouldn't do him any favours if he lost his cool now even though inside his mind, he was purring like the creature on their house banners.

He wasn't stupid, he was far from it in fact. He knew what this was, the valyrian steel, the solid gold lion pommel, the mention of his, until now, presumed dead brother. The links were there.

This was Brightroar, the long lost valyrian sword of House Lannister. And it was back in their hands.

Now came the negotiation. He thought. There was no way this sword was leaving his sight now that he was in possession of it. True to a famous old saying, a Lannister always pays their debts, and a substantial one was sat on the table in front of him. The man stood a few feet away, waiting to collect his fee.

"I think this is one of the first times I've ever seen my father speechless." Jaime spoke up into the silence of his tent. He looked up and saw his son nudging Snow in the arm in jest.

"How much?" He interrupted before Jaime got carried away with his incessant mockery.

He looked towards Snow and repeated the question "How much?" He said again. The quicker he could get this business over and done with, the quicker he could get rid of everyone from his tent so he could pour himself a large goblet of arbour gold and just stare at the majesty of their family heirloom, in the privacy of his tent where nobody could see him smiling.

Snow quirked his eyebrow and shook his head "I'm not here for your money, Gerion specifically asked me to deliver it back to house Lannister. It never belonged to me in the first place so you owe me nothing." The boy said as he stroked his beard.

Has to be a trick, nobody just gives away such a thing, selling it could have set him for life.

Before the boy could change his mind though, he decided to not look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Fine. House Lannister would like to thank you for your service." He replied as he gave the boy a nod, it was the least he deserved for delivering the sword.

His son seemed mortified by his response "Really? That's it? He comes here and brings this back where it belongs and all he gets is a thanks?" Jaime said as he pointed at Brightroar and looked at him in annoyance.

He would have to have a word with his son after Snow left, speaking like that at him was bad enough behind closed doors but in front of company, totally unacceptable.

"You heard Lord Snow, it was a service to house Lannister. You should watch who you're speaking to." He replied to his insolent son with gritted teeth.

Snow cleared his throat as the two Lannisters butted heads "Not lord Snow, my lord, just Jon. And I didn't do it for house Lannister, I did it for a friend of mine, one of my closest in fact. I couldn't give a dusty fuck about any reward or owt, as far as I'm concerned, I kept the promise I gave him by returning the sword to its owners. We're square, chief." Snow explained.

He looked away from his son who was now grinning at the boy's response and locked eyes with 'Just Jon'. He glared at the boy, a glare that made many a man cower underneath it but to his surprise and annoyance, Snow sent him one of equal intensity back his way.

Hard and unblinking silver pools of determination.

This lad had balls, he was confident it wasn't stupidity anymore.

It still didn't excuse the way he spoke in his presence.

"You're an ill-mannered individual aren't you." He said, the boy grinned but kept his eye's locked with his own.

"I learnt from the best. Your brother is a master in the art of insolence." Snow replied and for a split second, Tywin Lannister's mask cracked as a tiny upturn at the corner of his mouth appeared.

It was gone in a flash.

"And what has this brother of mine been up to that is so important that he couldn't return here with the sword himself?" He asked as he saw his son relax from the corner of his eye.

The grin on Snow's face dropped and his eye's widened, a normal man would have missed it but Tywin Lannister wasn't a normal man.

"Ser Jaime will tell you everything I told him on the way here. I have to leave, I'm needed somewhere else." Snow explained as he nodded to them both and left the tent before he could even reply.

His son took the seat across from him and looked at the sword on the table with a smile.

"Still can't believe its back, and uncle Gerion is still alive." Jaime seemed to say to himself as Tywin carried on looking at the tent entrance where Snow had just walked out.

Jaime seemed to notice "He's an interesting one, isn't he?" His son said.

Very interesting. He thought to himself.

"He certainly knows how to make an impression, I'll give him that and only that." He replied as he turned back towards the table and admired the sword once again.

He wouldn't be forgetting the name Jon Snow in a hurry, that was for certain.

Rhaenys

"So you have no idea who that was?" She asked to Margaery's brother as they made their way back towards the castle. She wasn't supposed to be out at the moment but she couldn't help her intrigue when she heard her grandmother's conversation with Ser Jaime. She only heard the tail end of it but heard that somebody was of interest to her grandmother.

That led to her dragging Ser Loras out of the castle and following Ser Jaime to the practice yards. What she'd seen there was very interesting indeed, her grandmother was rightfully intrigued by this mysterious dark figure.

She needed a name so she could do her own investigation. An unknown having the ability to drop a Kingsguard , one of their best, so easily was definitely something worth looking into.

That's all it was, planning for the future of their house. A man of such skill could be very useful to them, maybe even a future Kingsguard.

She wouldn't mind being assigned such a man to her services.

Had nothing to do with those raven curls that flowed with the same grace as his movements with a blade, had nothing to do with his powerful form darting around with such precision and determination, enough to display the power of his body as it pressed against the sleeves of his tunic.

Had nothing to do with the brief glimpse of those silver eyes that looked at Ser Jaime with such intensity that even she felt something.

No, it had nothing to do with any of those things, nothing to do with her being a horny twenty year old watching a beautiful man put on a clinic against one of the best fighters in the realm.

Who the fuck was she kidding?

Joffrey Baratheon, Ser Edmure and Harrold Hardyng had already approached her since they'd arrived and she already knew that they couldn't compare to the man she'd just seen. She'd not even met the man and she could already tell he was better than the other three, any one of those would have gloated and celebrated their victory over Ser Jaime but not this one, he acted with grace as he helped the Kingsguard he'd just defeated to his feet, zero posturing in sight.

She was that lost in her thoughts, she didn't hear Loras' answer to her question.

She turned and looked at him as they got closer to the castle "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

He huffed, straightening his sword belt, hand on the hilt of his blade, primed and ready to protect her if it was needed.

"Really, your grace? You were the one to ask me the question." He replied.

She shook her head and looked ahead of them "Forgive me, my mind was wandering that's all." She said.

Loras chuckled "Nothing to do with tall, dark and handsome your grace?" He japed as she shot him a good-natured glare "And to answer your question, no, I have no idea who that was. Maybe ask her grace, the Queen mother who he was." He suggested with a smile on his face.

She smiled at a few people she walked past as they bowed for her before turning to him "And if I ask her, she'll know I was eavesdropping on one of her conversations. It's clear that your sister got the brains I see." She japed as she gave him a wink. She heard him mutter the word 'charming' as they reached the courtyard of the castle.

Stood at the main entrance to the castle was Dany and she didn't look pleased at all.

"Where have you been?" She asked in a harsh voice, Loras looked at her like he was gonna enjoy this.

She shrugged as they entered the castle, Dany tagging along with an air of annoyance "I just went to have a look around that's all, nothing special." She explained.

"And you couldn't wait for me? Mother has sent Ser Jaime off on some task or whatever so I've been confided to the castle until he returns, I can't believe you went without me." Dany huffed as they turned a corner.

"And you missed some of the lords who came to greet us, we had to make an excuse for you when they asked where you were." She explained further, a smirk on her beautiful face as she looked at her "Rhaegar isn't happy." She finished.

Brilliant, that's all she needed.

"Her grace has been eyeing boys." Ser Loras blurted out as they reached the wing of the castle that held their chambers.

Her mouth dropped open for a fraction of a second before turning on the Knight of Flowers staring daggers at the man.

"Loras!" She reprimanded. He bowed his head in apology but the smile on his face exposed his real feelings of the situation.

"Oh really?" Dany said, a tone with full intent to tease her, all traces of anger lost.

She shook her head as they reached the corridor that her room was in "No not really, don't listen to him." She said but Dany and Loras were already grinning at each other.

Please don't...

But her prayers were in vain as the pair of them decided the most interesting thing they could be doing right now was teasing her.

"And did any of them take your fancy Rhae? Did any of them make you swoon?" Dany said as she pretended to do such a thing herself, just to tease the living hell out of her.

Before she could reply and put a stop to her teasing, Loras spoke again.

"Tall, dark and handsome, that's what he was like. Unfortunately for her, she never got his name." Loras interrupted again. She'd have to have a word with Margaery, see if she could get any embarrassing stories about Loras out of her.

Dany sighed for added effect "It sounds like the start of one of those stories, doesn't it, Ser Loras?" She said, Loras snorted but nodded anyway.

"And he beat Ser Jaime in a spar, quite convincingly might I add." Loras explained a little further. Dany quirked an eyebrow at that as she looked back at him before looking at her.

"Really?" She asked, a tone that sounded like she didn't believe him. A look of annoyance took over face after a few seconds. "Wait, is that where he was? Instead of escorting me around the stalls and what have you, he was out getting filthy in the practice yard?" She growled.

Ser Jaime was in trouble.

She looked at Loras and he looked a bit scared of Dany's temper, instead of helping him out she shrugged her shoulders at him and grinned a little.

Serves you right , you gobby cow.

Dany huffed when she didn't get a response "Wait until I see that man. I need to go and speak with mother about this, sending him off to play in the dirt wasn't exactly fair on me." Dany said, mainly to herself than them two.

Her eyes widened at that, panic building up at a rapid pace.

"Wait, you can't Dany." She said as she grabbed the top of her arm. Dany looked down at where she was being held and the looked back up into her eye's. She could see the violet in her aunt's eyes darken.

That classic Targaryen temper was on full display .

"And why is that?" She said as she shrugged her hand off her arm.

She sighed in resignation, there was no way of getting around this "Because if she knows that you know where Jaime was then she'd ask how you knew that." She said.

"And that's a problem, why?" Dany replied. They were stood just outside of her chamber so she entered and motioned for Dany to follow her in. She motioned for Ser Loras to keep guard at her door, he'd done enough damage with that massive trap of his. When she did, he nodded and mouthed the word 'sorry' to her.

At least he knew he was being a pain in the arse and she nodded at his apology, unfortunately for her, Loras' apology was the least of her concerns as she closed the door and turned to her aunt.

Dany was stood in the middle of her room with her arms folded across her chest, enough the squeeze and push her breasts together, her cleavage was on full display because of that. Coupled with fierce look she was sending her way, the effect of it conjured up some interesting thoughts.

It was something to think about later however, since her aunt was waiting for an explanation.

She cleared her throat "The reason you can't tell grandmother it was me who told you about Ser Jaime is because she'll find out that I was eavesdropping." She explained as she walked over to her table and poured both of them a goblet of dornish red each.

Dany's ire seemed to slowly fade away as she accepted the drink "Why were you eavesdropping?" She asked before taking a sip of her wine. They both sat down at the table next to the window, a wide look of the festivities outside on full display.

This tournament was going to be huge, Dorne and the Reach hadn't even arrived yet and the amount of people was staggering.

She took a sip of her own wine before answering "I wasn't eavesdropping on purpose, I just happened to catch the tail end of your mother's conversation with Ser Jaime. I just thought it was weird grandma was sending a Kingsguard to spy on somebody that's all. That's why I ended up leaving without you, less people meant less chance of being caught." She explained to her aunt.

Dany seemed to accept her reason as she hummed before taking another sip of her wine "It does seem kind of odd, doesn't it? I wonder what is so special about this man that it warrants a Kingsguard spy?" Dany mused.

She shrugged since she didn't have the answer herself "That's what I was trying to find out myself, all I did find out was that he was pretty good with a sword and that was of what I saw, me and Loras only got there when they were finishing up. We had to leave pretty much as soon as they finished before anybody spotted us." She said.

Dany leaned over the table a little "Wait, so Loras was telling the truth? This mystery man managed to beat Ser Jaime?" She asked, a little bit of excitement playing in her eyes.

She huffed in amusement "He didn't just manage to Dany, it was pretty convincing. Even Ser Jaime looked shocked when he was forced to yield." She explained as pictures of the beautiful sable haired man jumped around in her head.

Dany must have seen something on her face to give away what she was thinking about so she leant a little closer and spoke in hushed tones.

She smiled "Soooo, what did he look like?" She asked as she sipped from her goblet, amusement and interest behind those violet pools.

She sighed and ultimately lost the battle against the small blush that appeared on her face "Where do I begin?" She said.

Dany's smile grew "Start from the best bit." She said.

She quirked an eyebrow and smiled herself "Which is?" She asked.

"Arse." Came Dany's deadpan reply.

She gasped in faux offence "Daenerys Targaryen, you filthy woman." She said before the pair of them broke out in laughter.

Jon

The moment he heard Kireina's voice in the back of his mind while he was stood in Tywin Lannister's tent, he had to leave to check up on her. If Tywin Lannister was offended by his abrupt exit then that was just something he would have to deal with some other time.

At this moment in time, he was wading his way through a forest, a forest that took him an hour to get to on foot. He would have taken a horse but a brisk walk in the afternoon breeze was just what he needed after the big lunch that he'd had, when Greatjon Umber offers you a whole roast chicken for dinner, you eat the whole roast chicken for dinner.

He huffed as he climbed over a log to get deeper into the forest, he was thankful that Kireina had the foresight to use forests and wooded areas to land in recent months. He knew at some point that the cat would be out of the bag and Kireina would be revealed to the world but right now, he needed to keep her a secret, a target on his and her back was the last thing they needed right now.

Especially with all the thoughts that had been going through his mind lately.

He was hoping to all the gods, old and new that he wasn't making a grave mistake. Uncle Benjen, Aemon and even Kireina had made their beliefs known, and Jon had agreed with them at the time, even ready to fly back to Winterfell to confront the man himself, the man who was actually his uncle by blood.

But the thoughts he had just before he went to sleep each night wouldn't go away.

What if? What if they wrong? What if he was wrong?

He was 99% sure that he wasn't, that he was Lyanna Stark's son and not Eddard Stark's. But that 1% existed, and madder things had happened in the world to completely ignore that sliver of a chance.

One of those mad things was looking at him now.

"What took you so long?" The great mountain of magic growled through their bond.

Kireina was currently laid out in an open area with the sunlight beaming down on her, the light bounced off of the crystals on her back and wings aggressively, casting rainbow prisms around them.

It was distractingly beautiful.

He sighed as he approached her, the subtle purr from her chest could be heard and felt through the ground as he got closer to her. He knew she had a certain affinity with light, sunlight specifically but that was as far as she explained. Apart from her claiming that she essentially feeds off of it, not much else was known about her love for the sun.

"I'm here now aren't I? Now where is that little sod?" He asked as he looked around.

She huffed and craned her neck towards a tree where he spotted the white ball of fur curled up asleep, the bones of some unknown animal scattered all around him.

He approached Ghost, looking for an idea of where he could be hurt. When he got closer, the direwolf's eyes slowly opened before he bolted up right and jumped him.

"Get off me ya little arsehole!" He exclaimed as Ghost slobbered all over his face. The wolf eventually got off of him, giving Jon a better chance to evaluate his injuries.

From first glance he couldn't see much wrong with his boy, just stood there with his tongue lolling out, red eyes bouncing between him and Kireina. After a few minutes of trying to work out what was wrong with him, he decided to ask the dragon instead.

"I thought you said Ghost was with you and he was hurt? From what I can see, there's nothing wrong with him." He said as he carried on looking for something he might be missing.

"I didn't say he was hurt, I said he was gonna get hurt. There's a difference." She explained.

He turned towards her as he ruffled Ghost's fur, a quirked eyebrow shot her way "And why was he gonna get hurt? Are there poachers or something?" He asked as he looked around, a trickle of concern entered into his system.

Kireina blew smoke out of her nose, it was the closest thing to a snort he'd ever seen from her.

"I was the one who was gonna do the hurting!" She growled as she looked at the white wolf. Ghost to his credit didn't even react and carried on panting in excitement as Jon carried on ruffling his fur.

"Why? Why would you hurt him? Just look at that face," he said as he framed Ghost's face between his two hands. "how could you hurt a face like that?" He asked.

"With great swiftness and destruction." She replied as Ghost began licking one of his hands that was framing his face. He let go and wiped it on his surcoat.

What the fuck had he done to make her this angry?

She obviously heard his thoughts as she answered that question, the answer amusing and annoying him in equal measure.

"He snuck up on me and...and relieved himself all over me!" She said, he could feel her ire between their bond.

He sighed then released a humourless chuckle.

"This isn't funny! What would you do if I relieved myself all over you?" She asked, he could feel her getting more annoyed.

He had to end this.

"I would probably drown, but that's beside the point. You had me come all the way out here because he peed on you. He's only young, chances are he was marking his territory and went the wrong way about it. He just wants to make friends that's all." He said, trying to defend the pup's actions. Ghost rubbed his head against his leg in response.

Kireina huffed but seemed calm down.

"Can we play nice now?" He asked as he looked between the two of them. He felt like a bloody father telling the kids off for being naughty.

Kireina blew smoke out her nose in response, Jon believed that was the best he was gonna get from her. Ghost just licked his hand in response.

He nodded "Good. And you," He said as he pointed at Ghost "Stop peeing on her would ya? You've been warned." He said as the wolf lowered his head and let out a pathetic whine.

"That won't work either, you need to learn." He said as he walked towards Kireina and sat down next to her, leaning his back against her warm flank. Ghost timidly approached them and laid down next to him, lowering his head to his paws and giving Jon them bloody puppy eyes.

He folded his arms and closed his eyes, a deep breath in and out as he did so. A little nap felt just right at that moment.