4 Chapter 4: Recuperating

"*Uuurghhhh!!* OWW...!!" Will whined, wondering what the hell happened. Blinking away the sunlight that seemed to be trying to blind him, Will tried to get himself into a sitting position but quickly decided that was a terrible idea when all he felt was pain.

As the pain finally went away, he got a good look at where he was, and he had to say it was some fancy shit!! The room was clean beyond reason for this world, the bed he was on was huge, and the room was bigger than many apartments he had rented in his previous life.

To top it all off, the bedding felt like it was made of silk or something softer, if such a thing existed. So lost was he in admiring his room from his prone position, he didn't see the woman who was just entering the room. It wasn't until whoever was approaching the bed to check up on him that he noticed her, and she noticed he was awake.

"You're awake, M'lord!! I'll go get the prince!!" She didn't even wait for him to respond before she took off out of the room. 'She said, "Prince" and the only prince I've met so far is Oberyn....' Like a damn had broken, the memories of what happened before he passed out came flooding back into his head.

Thinking back to that fight, he couldn't believe he pulled off everything he did. Although he did owe Oberyn now, the man had without question saved his life from the slaver, while also getting him medical attention. The seriousness of his injuries were unclear, but for how bad it hurt to move, he figured it wasn't just some scratch he could have walked off, especially in this tiny body.

"You finally woke up!!" Oberyn shouted as he entered the room, breaking Will out of his train of thought. Moving his head slightly to stare at the man who saved his life, Will smiled, and for once it didn't seem forced.

"I have you to thank for saving my life. I owe you one. Thanks..." Will said, getting a beaming smile from the man. Oberyn grabbed a chair and pulled it over to the bedside, then took a seat. "You fought like a true Dornishman!! You must tell me the story of everything that happened 2 days ago!!" Oberyn said excitedly, brushing off Will's gratitude.

"I've been unconscious for two days... great." Will said, grumbling the last part there. Two days was a lot better than being dead, so he wouldn't dwell on that too much, but he was still sour about it. For the next 20 minutes he explained what he did after leaving the caravan, all the way to the point where he fell unconscious, minus a few lying and stealing moments.

He also lied his ass off on how the fight went down, saying he crushed the people on the ship by pushing crates full of heavy objects onto them, while the men in the ally were crushed similarly. By the end of his tale, Oberyn was staring at him in wonder.

"The city watch got a similar story after they interrogated a few people, and those girls you freed said the same. What I don't get is why you went on the boat in the first place...?" Oberyn said, still smiling down at Will.

Pondering over his response, Will decided to just tell the truth. "They were acting strange, and after watching them for a bit, I saw a chest being delivered. I was hoping for some rare great item, but instead I found the girls." He answered plainly, to which Oberyn smiled broadly.

"Women are the greatest treasures a man could get! You have a few years to go before you can truly understand!" Oberyn said, then laughed like Will didn't get the joke. He did.

"Where am I?" Will finally asked, looking around the exquisite room. "The Red Keep. I brought you here after you fell unconscious. It is good you woke up when you did! Elia is setting out for Dragonstone today to be with her husband, and I will be setting out with her. From there, I will sail back to Dorne." Oberyn said, Will got the message almost instantly.

Without Oberyn here, Will couldn't stay in the palace. "How bad are my injuries?" Will asked, almost dreading the answer. Oberyn looked at him with a twinkle in his eyes, then answered, "You cracked three ribs, severe bruising on your left arm, and sprained your left leg. It was some fight you were in. You seem to have a gift for finding trouble."

He paused as if analyzing something, then asked, "Do you want to come with me?" There was a long moment of pause as Will thought over the question. He would definitely learn a lot from Oberyn, but everything he was hoping to accomplish would be happening within the next 2 years, and if he left now, he would miss all the chances to do it.

"I can't." He said, then before Oberyn could say anything, he continued. "I can't for the next 2 years at least, but after that, I'll come find you in Dorne."

Oberyn was curious about why he would wait two years, and after pulling out a dagger from at his waist he asked, "Does it have something to do with why you carry a Valyrian Steel blade?"

Silence overtook the room, and Will wasn't sure he was even breathing. 'Valyrian Steel?! My daggers are Valyrian Steel?!!! Are all my weapons Valyrian Steel!?!' Will shouted in his mind!! The weapons did look to all be made of the same material when he inspected them that first time, but he just figured they looked weird because he was in a new world!

"Are you sure my dagger is Valyrian Steel?!!" Will asked after an awkward amount of silence. Oberyn simply nodded in response to the question, still analyzing Will, not missing the true surprise he showed upon learning his weapon was Valyrian steel.

"The dagger, and a few others of similar metal were gifted to me by some strange being. I did not steal them, nor did I know any of them were Valyrian steel. Although now that I know, I'm going to have to be a lot more careful about who I show them to." Will said, not even once thinking Oberyn would steal the dagger from him. Why? It just wasn't in the man's nature to steal.

The two of them talked for a bit longer, before Will asked, "How long do you think it will take for me to be healed up enough to get moving on my own again?"

Oberyn put on a thinking pose, then grabbed a bag from beside the bed that Will hadn't been able to see before. "I've prepared some salves, bandages, herbs, and some teas with instructions on how to use everything." Oberyn paused for a second, looking like something just occurred to him. "You can read, yes?" Oberyn asked, unsure if Will had the training to read.

With a deadpan expression, Will answered, "What do you think?" All he got was a nod before Oberyn continued, "If you follow the instructions, I would say you should fully recover in about 3 weeks."

That was good news at least. For how bad he hurt, Will thought it would take about double the time Oberyn thought it would, but he was basing it off of his previous life. This world had magic, hell he had magic!! On that train of thought, he realized water magic could be used for healing based on what he knew from Avatar.

'I need to make water magic a priority!' He thought, knowing if he learned how to do it sooner rather than later, he would most likely be able to live through situations he normally wouldn't. "Thank you, Oberyn. I'll repay you for this." Will said, truly grateful to the man for saving his life.

"You would have done the same for me." The prince said, not wanting to dwell on the topic any further. "What will you do for two years?" Oberyn asked, changing the subject to one he actually wanted to talk about.

"Most likely go up North or somewhere in the mountains. I'll spend a month or so here in King's Landing before I depart though. I need to buy a few things, and learn how to skin and prepare an animal properly." The last part Will said with a small laugh, to a joke only he would understand.

They made more small talk before someone came to inform Oberyn they were departing for Dragonstone in an hour. It was at this time a thought occurred to Will. "Why didn't you and Elia just sail from Dorne to Dragonstone? It would have been much faster, wouldn't it?"

Oberyn actually let out a sigh at the question, and Will wasn't sure if he would get an answer. Just when he was going to try and say something else, Oberyn spoke, "Elia is not in the best of health. She can sail, but over long periods her health turns for the worst. Traveling by carriage let's her stop and rest whenever things get bad, and is better in the long run for her."

From watching the series, Will did recall there being talk about how Elia wasn't healthy when she was born, same with her's and Oberyn's oldest brother, Doran. Only, Doran's health got so bad later in life, it left him unable to walk.

"Makes sense then." Will said, annoyed at himself for having brought up something like that. Oberyn didn't take any offense by it, and with the help of some servants, he got Will moved from the palace and into an inn, one which would be paid for in advance, for five weeks. Oberyn even helped Will hire a woman who would watch over and take care of him during his stay at the inn, much to Will's protests.

Once Will was all situated in the inn, Oberyn brought Elia and Rhaenys to see him before they departed, and Elia even gave him a kiss on his forehead, thanking him for being there on the Caravan. He didn't ask for their thanks, but he wouldn't turn down a kiss from a lady such as Elia.

Seeing him with a dopey smile, Oberyn urged his niece, Princess Rhaenys to do the same as her mother, which she did, much to Will's annoyance. Soon afterward, Oberyn took his sister and niece, leaving Will with one last piece of advice. "You have a very beautiful maid. Make sure to take full advantage of her services." Then left Will alone in his room with the servant girl, Dayna.

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For a little over a fortnight, Will was bedridden in the Inn. Dayna would come to check on him every hour faithfully, ensuring his comfort and that all his needs were met.

(A.N. He's 5! Get your heads out of your asses!!)

Rather than just sit there and do nothing, Will had Dayna purchase a small book filled with blank pages which he used to write out important events he remembered from the story. He also wrote out important events he wanted to take advantage of, and how he wanted to do them.

So far there was only one event he knew of that he knew the location of, and that was here in King's Landing towards the end of the rebellion. Other than that, the other locations were a bit of an unknown at the moment, but he would know where they were later if his plans went anything like he hoped.

While he was bedridden, he also practiced with his magic. It wasn't much, but he was able to move the water in a few bowls that Dayna had brought on his request, although she thought it was weird. He was also able to summon a fireball faster, and bigger, but because he was in a confined space, he never went to practice throwing it. Air magic was still the same as when he used it during the forest, but he knew he would get better with it and the other three elements in time.

Once he could properly sit up, he started to read as well, and upon learning he could do that, Dayna had asked if he would teach her how to as well. He didn't have anything better to do, so why the fuck not. Whenever she was taking care of him, he would talk to her about the alphabet and how to read and the like.

He thought that was one of the reasons she was always trying to 'help' him when he clearly didn't need it. The potions book he purchased from the Trader was a fountain of knowledge on how to build salves and potions, how to cure poisons and create them as well. Sadly, Will didn't have any of the ingredients to make anything from the book, but that would change later on down the road.

"What does this say, M'lord?" Dayna asked, interrupting Will from his train of thoughts, holding the very potions book he had been using to kill time up, while pointing to a specific line of text.

"-Consequences of this potion in large doses will result in skin rotting."- Will said, reading the text from the book. "And uneducated people say, M'lord. To say it properly, it is, My Lord. And for the hundredth time, I. AM. NOT. A. LORD!" He found it funny when she called him M'lord at first, but after the first week he hated it.

He had a name, and if people weren't going to use it then why the hell was he given a name in the first place!! As for correcting her speech, that was something she had asked him to help her with so people could understand her and she could get a decent job doing something other than spreading her legs.

Originally she had been surprised that Will could read, and when she found him reading from the potions book, she asked what it was about, at which point she jumped at the idea of learning about healing. Dayna had already gotten a pretty good understanding of the alphabet, but she could only get so far trying to sound words out.

However, going from being illiterate to where she was now, well she wasn't complaining. And she was being paid to be here, so that was like icing on the cake. Seeing her go back to the book, Will decided to stretch his legs by walking around the room.

The pain was still there, although it had alleviated a great deal from when he had woken up in the palace. The little bit of walking and moving about kept his body from locking up on him, and a little bit of pain was better than sitting on his ass for another second longer.

After the third week of being cooped up in his room, Will had Dayna escort him outside to get himself to keep moving forward. There was only one more day before his time with Dayna would be paid off, and she would go back to doing what she was doing before, and she didn't look too happy about it.

He would take her with him, but his plans didn't factor anyone else into the mix, and despite how rude it may seem, she would slow him down or get him killed, and he wasn't about to let that happen. That however, did not mean he would get rid of her while he was still going to be staying in the city. He liked having her around to go purchase things for him at the stalls, and to just help him out in general.

"Hey, Dayna? How would you feel about extending your employment with me for a while longer?" Will asked, turning his eyes upward to meet hers. She towered over him by almost a good three feet, so he had to crane his neck to meet her gaze.

Looking down at him, she looked intrigued as she answered, "That depends on how much longer, and how much I'll be paid." Will smiled at that. It was something she had actually taught him, saying you never give anything out for free, which was why so few people knew how to read in this world.

Those that could read were not willing to teach it for nothing. He figured that was why she didn't tell him that until after she already had a good understanding of the alphabet. Just as he was about to tell her she would still make whatever Oberyn was paying her, he stopped.

"How much are you making now?" He asked, not having been there for the payment part. "A Silver Stag a day." She answered, quite proud of that fact. She made in one day working for him, what she would have made working a fortnight anywhere else, and that was if she was lucky.

"Alright then! You will be paid at the end of every day." Will said, then handed her a Silver Stag. Confused, she asked, "I've already been paid for today?" Without looking at her, he said, "If I leave abruptly or something should happen to me, you would still have earned that. I don't like leaving debts behind, even if I'm dead. Consider it payment for your last day."

The Lannister's weren't the only ones that paid their debts. If you did right by him, Will would in turn do right by you. However the same went for if you wronged him, he would do everything in his power to answer in kind.

As they continued around the city, they passed by the Alchemist's Guild, and Will wondered if he was allowed to go inside. "Do they allow anyone entry?" He asked, gesturing to the guild. Dayna frantically shook her head saying, "No! They work only for the King!! It's a death sentence for anyone foolish enough to go inside!!"

And then like she expected him to go in anyway, she began pulling Will away from the Alchemist building. The both of them travelled around to a few different stalls collecting a few herbs and glass vials and an Alchemy set, which they would use to try and create their own salves with the recipes from the potions book.

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Without even realizing it, 3 months had passed in the blink of an eye. In that time, Will had perfected a few of the recipes in the potions book after lots of trial and error. On top of that, Dayna had taken him to a butcher she was friends with, although Will guessed they would be more than friends soon if the way they flirted with each other was anything to go by.

His name was Joshua, and he seemed extremely happy to teach Will part of his craft, although it didn't come free. Will had to pay 25 coppers a day, for a whole month, clear until he could gut and clean most critters. He learned how to pluck chickens as well, and was even shown how to make small useful objects out of bones or how to tan the hides to be used as blankets or cloaks.

Needless to say, the information was invaluable, and he was glad it was Joshua who had taught him. The guy was nice, but not stupid enough to let himself be walked over, and was almost as greedy as they came.

The man would never be cheated on a bargain, would never miss out on making money off of something others considered useless, and he never wasted anything. All of the guts and organs from the creatures he worked on, he sold them to a pig farmer who he frequently made deals with.

In the three months, Will had also practiced his magic to a certain degree. To not risk others finding out about him, he could only practice at night or in a secluded area where there was no risk of people spying on him.

Out of the four elements, water and earth were the furthest along, as he could practice all he wanted at night with water in his room, so being spied on wasn't a concern. Earth magic improved because he had a secret project of building a tunnel from outside the city near the ocean front to inside the walls below the Red Keep and to one of the connecting tunnels beneath the Great Sept of Baelor.

Will had plans to take a few treasures of his own, then seal the entrances until he needed to use them at a later time, and he would for certain need to get in the city later. So far he had gotten the majority of the tunnel done, it was just making sure everything was supported properly that took all his time. Healing was still out of reach, but he could move the water around his hands like he remembered from watching the avatar.

Aside from a few other things, Will mostly robbed, traded, or bought goods he would need sometime down the road. Already in his Inventory he managed to steal 6 of the Mad King's ships without anyone ever realizing he had anything to do with it, and a enough food and wine for a hundred people to last year, but if he went beyond the Wall, he could have it all traded with one meeting with the Wildlings, so he wasn't about to stop just because it looked like he had a lot.

Another thing he wanted to find a bulk of was Dragonglass, but it was hard to come by. If he could get to Dragonstone he could claim it by the boatload, but going there right now could very well result in his death if he wasn't prepared. In all three months of roaming around the city of King's Landing, he only managed to buy a small chest's worth of the stuff in total, and it was not enough to arm even a small group of people to fight against the Whitewalkers, let alone an army.

He had no grand illusion about leading armies, being a king, or something of the sort, but if he could arm the Wildlings with Dragonglass a few years in advance before the Night king came, then he could turn the tide for the living by a long shot, and he really liked the thought of living.

Another thing of note, he had snuck into the Alchemist guild by using earth magic to build a temporary tunnel inside. The Mad King must really fucking love the stuff, because when he broke into the store room, there were about 3 thousand jars of the stuff, and the kingdom wasn't even at war.

In the series, after Cersei ordered the guild to work for months making the stuff for her, they had almost 8 thousand of the jars, but they were also at war with every other kingdom on the continent. Will didn't want to take so much that it would be too noticeable, so he only took 450 jars, at which point he put the room back to the way he found it, then left the building, filling the tunnel back in.

If he needed to get back in at a later date, he would just build another tunnel, but for now he couldn't risk someone discovering the tunnel, and with a war about to happen, and him being here, he had no idea how the future would change.

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Another week went by, and Will figured it was time he set out of King's Landing to go and truly learn to use his power. Especially fire!! It was the only element he had that could kill the bloody undead, so neglecting it was not a smart option.

"I'll miss you!!" Dayna said, practically squeezing the life out of him while he suffocated between her bosom. Joshua was also there to see him off, and after a slap to the back that sent him face first into a wall, Will was ready to leave this shithole.

Climbing onto the horse he had just bought the day before, Will felt a little uneasy. Aside from riding with Eric, he hadn't had the chance to ride a horse, and low and behold, it was still terrifying. "If you try to eat me, I'm going to slow roast you over a fire!" Will said under his breath, low enough that Joshua and Dayna couldn't hear him, but hopefully loud enough that the horse could.

It was a monster of a beast. Black as night, the horse towered over all other horses Will had seen thus far, and it was built like a castle. If the King had an army of these things he wouldn't need soldiers, just send the horses into battle to run right over whoever the fuck it was he was at war with.

Will had no idea what breed of horse it was, but the man he bought it from assured him he wouldn't find a better horse in all of Westeros, which better be true considering he paid almost three times more than the next most expensive horse in the stables.

Throwing one last glance towards Joshua and Dayna, Will waved his arm, then gave his horse a light kick to get him going. He was going to head North on the King's Road, then when he got in the middle of butt-fuck-nowhere, he would stop and train his magic.

As he rode, he actually came to enjoy riding his horse, so much so that he decided to think up a good name for the thing. "Hmmm, It's gotta be good!!" He said aloud, not really bothering to keep quiet. Right now he was traveling in the open fields, and there wasn't anyone he could see for miles.

"Skipper? No, that would make me Gilligan. Watson? No, Holmes doesn't have a good ring to it. Ect..."

(3 hours later)

"Joey? Would that make me Chandler? Better not." For hours he had been speaking aloud to himself and the horse, but no name jumped out at him. Finally he said, "Trojan?" And before he could really decide the name, the horse decided for him by basically nodding its head. Whether that was because it liked the name or simply wanted him to shut the fuck up was anyone's guess.

"Trojan it is!! If I can use you to fool my enemies, then all the better!!" Will stated, and it seemed Trojan agreed. "Let's just hope I won't have to crawl inside of you!" Will said, and he could swear he heard Trojan ask, "THE FUCK DID YOU SAY?!!" The horse didn't actually make a noise, but Will liked to think if he could talk, that's what he would have said.

Laughing a bit, he shouted, "I'm just kidding!! For Now..."