Small Council Chambers, Red Keep - King's Landing, Crown Lands — Early nightfall
Visenya was surprised when Tywin had called her into the Chambers of the Small Council, surprisingly being in good timing with her leave from Olenna's solar.
"This will be an unlike surprise to all of them" she pointed out as she filled a goblet of wine from the car in the corner and took a sip.
The council members would arrive very soon and they were not expecting them.
"I could care less what their opinion is. Right now I need people I can work with. Considering Cersei and Tyrion will be present as well, better you also be," he said, moving to stand behind his chair at the head of the table.
He had carefully placed all chairs to his left, leaving a single chair to the right for her.
"You know I would never deny a chance to attend a meeting, not when important things are at stake," she said, not even needing to bring up Jaime because he knew.
"Good. After it is over, you can tell me how your meeting with that Old Thorn went," he added just as the sound of steps could be heard coming down the hallway.
Visenya emptied her goblet in one go and moved to stand by his right, her back as straight as ever and her amber eyes glowed dangerously.
The doors were pushed open by two guards and the members of the small council came to a halt upon meeting their sharp gaze.
They quickly noticed how the chairs had been arranged and how the Lion and the Dragoness were looking at them. Tywin did have a far harder and intimidating stare, his presence magnified by having Visenya by his side.
They did not expect her to be present but they were not surprised. Any clever man knew that the Dragoness possessed a dangerous mind and it was her opinion sometimes Tywin would consider. Usually, the wife of the Hand would not be present in such matters but neither would be Tyrion; who had appeared right after the rest of the men. Joffrey was absent on a hunt and Cersei would attend in his place as his mother, although she had yet to come.
Tywin wasted no time sitting and motioned for the others to do so. Visenya took her seat as per usual by his right and the rest of the council moved to take their own seats. There was this small silent confusion, none truly knowing where to sit but in the end, it was decided.
Petyr was directly by Tywin's left and right across from Visenya. He offered a small charming smile but quickly made it disappear when he felt the Old Lion glaring at him from the corner of his eye.
Next to the mockingbird sat Varys and last was Pycelle, his chains making a rather annoying sound until he was finally seated.
Tyrion watched amused, seeing how stiff and silent the men were in the presence of his father but he did not move to a seat yet. He remained standing and waited until his sister graced them with her presence.
She also said nothing but surveyed the room and saw how all the chairs had been placed. That did not stop her as she lifted one chair and moved it around the table, eventually placing it next to Visenya.
The two women exchanged a silent look with their eyes, the events of last night not having been forgotten.
In the end, Tyrion decided to follow her example. He started to drag the chair noisily but also comically due to his lack of height and strength before placing it opposite the head of the table.
He sat down and looked as everyone went quiet, the atmosphere tense and it often reminded him of any family dinner they had over the past twenty years.
"Intimate. Lovely table. Better chairs than the old small council chamber. Conveniently close to your own quarters. I like it."
He commented, trying to humour the others and not liking how serious the mood was.
Tywin did not comment and instead focused on the three men by his left.
"What news of Jaime?"
He asked them. It had reached their ears that Jaime had escaped from the captivity of the Starks but no one knew of his whereabouts and whether he was alive or not. It had not truly helped the mood of the Old Lion and the silence coming from the three men did not help to fix it either. "Twenty thousand unwashed Northerners have known about his escape for weeks. Collectively, you control more spies and informants than the rest of the world combined. Do you mean to tell me that none of you has any notion of where he is?" No one dared to speak for a moment and Visenya let out a silent sigh. She glanced at Cersei, seeing her shifting in her seat faintly and glancing at her hands for a moment. She had been missing Jaime and worrying about him every night.
Hearing that there was no news about him, did not help her hold on to the small hope within her that he would return to her; like he always had. She felt the faintest touch of a leg against her own and merely glanced at her good-mother.
The woman could understand her situation to a degree but also knew that it was not the right place to act upon emotions. She merely motioned with her eyes towards Tywin, who had been busy glaring at the three men, and Cersei understood what she meant.
Now it was not the time to be emotional or weak, not in the presence of her father.
"We are trying, my lord," Varys finally said, gathering courage for all three of them.
"Try harder," he ordered, the command behind his voice evident to all. "What do we have, then?"
"Robb Stark and most of his bannermen are in Riverrun for the funeral of his grandfather Lord Hoster Tully. In Stark's absence, Roose Bolton holds Harrenhal, which would seem to make him Lord of Harrenhal, in practice if not in name," Varys informed and this seemed to at least be slightly better news than not having any idea about where Jaime is.
"Well, let him have it. The name suits our purposes far more than that useless pile of rubble." He commented, and Visenya was glad that the girl had left that cursed castle long before. "The Lord of Harrenhal will make a worthy suitor for the widow Arryn."
Immediately, the mockingbird rushed to please. "For which I am extremely grateful to you, my lord. Lady Arryn and I have known each other since we were children. She has always been positively predisposed toward me." He said, making Visenya passively roll her eyes at the unwanted drama.
Varys turned to look at Tyrion, pulling a quick expression at the drama as well; none truly digesting this entire ass-licking and fake-smiling thing that was Petyr's only skill.
"A successful courtship would make Lord Baelish acting Lord of the Vale." Pycelle pointed out after connecting his old aged eyes with the amber ones of Visenya.
The two of them had known each other ever since the Dragoness was young since Pycelle had served both her father and brother across the years. However, there was always something about him that did not seem to fit in her eyes.
The way he talked and walked, playing it a weak old man...it did not sit well with her. She never truly trusted him and this was why she had Maester Val as her personal Maester until his recent passing just a year before Robert chose to visit the North.
"Titles do seem to breed titles," Petyr commented.
Tywin focused fully on him. "You'll leave for the Eyrie as soon as possible and bring Lysa Arryn into the fold. Then the young wolf can add his own aunt to the list of people who have taken up arms against him."
This confused Tyrion, who realized there was one big trouble in this latest grand plan of his father. "Far be it from me to hinder true love, but Lord Baelish's absence would present certain problems. The royal wedding may end up being the most expensive event in living memory. Summer has ended, and hard days lie ahead. Not a good time to leave the crown's finances unattended."
To the men's surprise, it was Visenya, who spoke next. "A fair point" She then turned to Tywin. "If I may suggest an idea, my Lord" she continued, requesting his permission like the obedient wife she acted to be. Tywin nodded his head, allowing her to continue. "What if we name Tyrion as the New master of Coin?" she suggested, earning a small chuckle from Cersei.
The dwarf looked at her with betrayal and shock. "Master of Coin?"
She nodded. "It is a very good position, a suiting one and you should be more than a good replacement until Lord Baelish is to return"
"Visenya is right" Tywin added next. "It would appear to be a position that best suits your talents."
Tyrion leaned forward on the table. "I'm quite good at spending money, but a lifetime of outrageous wealth hasn't taught me much about managing it."
Cersei smirked. "I have no doubt you will prove equal to this challenge."
Astapor, Slaver's Bay, Essos - Earlier during the same day
Daenerys had been walking with Ser Jorah and her latest Queen's Guard addition, Ser Barristan. They walked alongside the port walls of the city, her mood sour after seeing all those innocent people crucified because they were disobedient slaves.
It complicated a lot of things in her mind, making her hate witnessing and not being able to do anything. She wished to help but she had no true power yet, considering that even her dragons were rather small and had yet to grow to the size of an adult.
She reminded herself that they were there to find an army and the Unsullied were said to be the best. However, seeing all of this around her, she started to have mental questions.
"We can find sellswords in Pentos and Myr," Ser Barristan suggested, clearly against the idea of buying enslaved soldiers.
"Is it 'wet already, Ser Barristan? If you want to sit on the throne your ancestors built, you must win it. That will mean blood on your hands before the thing is done." Ser Jorah said, the two men walking side by side with their Queen but also half a step back.
"The blood of my enemies, not the blood of innocents."
Jorah glanced at the other night that he did not truly like but the feeling was mutual. "How many wars have you fought in, Ser Barristan?"
The older man thought for a moment. "Three."
"Have you ever seen a war where innocents didn't die by the thousands?" he asked and the older knight shook his head. "l was in King's Landing after the sack, Khaleesi. You know what I saw? Butchery. Babies, children, old men. More women raped than you can count" he confessed, trying to forget the horrific images he saw as he followed Eddard Stark into King's Landing.
He knew that the Lannisters could be cruel, especially led by Tywin Lannister of all men but even he did not expect such a massacre. He understood it was war but the result was all the same, a haunting memory for him to add to the rest he had.
"There's a beast in every man and it stirs when you put a sword in his hand. But the Unsullied are not men. They do not rape. They do not put cities to the sword unless they're ordered to do so. If you buy them, the only men they'll kill are those you want dead." He continued, trying to make his point through.
Daenerys glanced at the other knight. "Do you disagree, Ser Barristan?"
"When your brother Rhaegar and your aunt Visenya led their army into battle at the Trident, men died for them because they believed in them, because they loved them, not because they'd been bought at a slaver's auction," he explained, choosing not to bring up the small part of men forced to fight because they had no choice like the Martells. "I fought beside the last dragons on that day, Your Grace. I bled beside them."
Jorah rolled his eyes. "Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, and Rhaegar died. Lady Visenya got captured and later returned to her Lord Husband," he reminded him.
This made the young dragon stop for a moment, looking forward deep in thought. "My brother used to say our aunt was a traitor," she pointed out, earning a look from the two knights. "She married a Lion, left our mother in King's Landing alone and later bent the knee to the same man that killed our brother and her nephew."
After that letter they found in Xaro's mansion, Daenerys had been trying to think of who this mysterious ally could be. When she thought of family, she thought of her aunt but Jorah had told her that the Dragoness had been absent the past sixteen years, spending her time in Casterly Rock with her husband above her head.
A scoff of annoyance made her and Jorah look at Barristan. "I am sorry for saying this, Your Grace, but your brother was a liar. Your aunt was never a traitor," he started, quickly rushing to defend the woman he knew since she was a child. "She fought for your house and your family, choosing to bind herself to a Lion to ensure your father had strong allies to protect him. She left her own young son at Casterly Rock to fight alongside Rhaegar and she risked her life to keep him safe from Robert."
Daenerys looked at him, lips parted faintly. "You sound as if you know her well," she pointed out.
A small smile formed on his lips. "I did, Your Grace. I had known her since she was younger than you and had fought by her side in many battles. She is the finest and most cunning woman you will ever meet." He glared at Jorah. "I am not sure what else you have been told about her but I assure you she did not bend the knee on her own accord."
"What do you mean?"
Barristan let out a heavy sigh, memories flooding into his mind of that dreadful day. "After your brother's defeat in the Trident, Robert captured both of us. Due to my honour as a knight, I had the chance to bend the knee and while I wished to refuse, your aunt forced me," he explained, shedding light on an event not many truly knew. "Lady Visenya was to be executed for being a Targaryen and the only reason she did not was because her Lord Husband interfered."
"Tywin Lannister," Jorah added, after seeing the confused face of his queen. "The Old Lion of Casterly Rock and the Head of the Lannister family."
"He struck a bargain for her freedom but only if she vowed to bend the knee and then leave King's Landing for good," the old knight explained, fuelling the anger within Daenerys after hearing what more bad things Robert had done to her family. "Your aunt did not wish to do so but she had no choice. She had a son left behind and the rest of Lord Lannister's children that she had looked after as their new mother. However, I am certain that all those years she has been yearning for your return."
Daenerys looked at her feet for a moment, feeling guilty. "All those years...I truly grew up hating that woman, thinking she was a traitor to our family," she confessed. She then thought about that letter and looked at Ser Barristan with some hope in her violet eyes. "Did you see her at all after the battle? Where is she now?"
"I am afraid I did not have the chance to see her again after the coronation, Your Grace. She was taken back to Casterly Rock where she resided up until I left the King's Guard to find you."
"I see..."
Jorah, suspecting where her thoughts were leading her, chose to interfere. "Khaleesi, you do not think that—"
"It could be possible, Ser Jorah. Who else could orchestrate all of that?" she questioned rhetorically, earning a confused look from the older knight.
"Tywin Lannister is a powerful man, Khaleesi and a controlling one nonetheless. Forgive me but I do not believe he would be any less strict with his second wife or allow her such freedom. Remember, he was the one that allowed his men to sack King's Landing in the first place."
Ser Barristan chose to also join the conversation. "He is not wrong, Your Grace. I have spent years as a King's Guard to your father while he served as Hand. He is a powerful man and one not many wish to cross," he added. "I do not know details of her whereabouts or well-being, Your Grace, but I know that if there is one person capable of thriving and surviving like that...it is Lady Visenya."