Tywin & Visenya's Chambers, Red Keep — King's Landing, CrownLands - Night
Visenya was sitting at the edge of her side of the bed, already changed into her red nightdress, let her hair down and had the chance to be a little freer now that they were alone.
Tywin was behind the changing screen, getting rid of his daily clothing to wear something comfortable and easy to sleep in. At the same time, he talked to her faintly about what he discussed with Olenna and that the deal was done; as well as the wedding that would take place very soon between Sansa and Tyrion.
Suddenly, while not face to face with one another, Tywin chose to change the topic.
"Did you know?" he asked, and she glanced at him, barely seeing his silhouette reflected on the material of the changing screen. "That Daenerys Targaryen, your niece, now has three dragons under her command."
At that moment, the Dragoness was thankful they were not face to face because she did not manage to hide her expression. Only recently she had one of her 'acquaintances' in Essos sending her a letter and informing her of what had taken place.
At least of what he knew about the dragons and the small group of people following Daenerys, one of them being the exiled knight Jorah Mormont. However, she had burnt that letter as soon as she finished reading it.
She wondered how Tywin found out, but the answer quickly came to her. Varys, she thought, narrowing her eyes and glaring at practically empty air once she realized that the eunuch was supplying information to him as well. Her silence had extended and she could almost feel Tywin's frown despite the distance and objects separating them. She kept looking forward, her back turned on him and her attention to the locked door.
"I had heard, but I did not make it my primary focus. Essos is a faraway place to begin with," she explained, lying through her teeth.
Finally, Tywin walked from behind the screen wearing a pair of breeches and a simple tunic. He looked at her as she had her back turned, but she soon shifted her body sideways to look at him, as if she could sense his sharp gaze.
"Essos is far, but not too far. Eventually, she might come back to reclaim the throne," he pointed, placing his hands behind his back and walking towards her.
She followed him with her eyes, not intimidated by his slow confident steps. "To do that, she will need an army and ships. Right now, she has none, and I doubt she will be able to find one easily either."
She knew of the Unsullied army and the Golden Company as well, both stationed in the East and both could provide her niece with the necessary army. However, they were very expensive and right now, Daenerys had almost nothing; especially when it came to gold and money. Even if she were to find a way to raise money to fund one army and even ships, it would take her long and something was telling her that her niece was not stupid or cold enough to try and sell living dragons.
Tywin eventually came to stand by her side, staring her down.
"If she ever got those things and were to march West, what would you do?"
Visenya craned her neck up, her amber eyes connecting with his emerald ones while the golden specks of them seemed to glow. She was not stupid and she understood what he was asking her.
Will you join your blood or your family?
It was a logical question, one that he did not really have to ponder upon until now. He knew the answer or at least he suspected it, but he still wished to confirm. After seeing a more self-doubting side of hers, he had to make sure. They might be married and have children, but in the end, she was and would always be a Dragon; much to his dismay. Daenerys was her blood, the only one left from her blood family and also her niece.
She had failed her nephew during the battle of the Trident, so who said she would not try to save her niece this time?
The Dragoness stood up so she could stare back at him without craning or hurting her neck. She stared right into his eyes with a silent challenge, their faces in far closer proximity than usual. Her amber eyes seemed to glow with confidence and certainty, something he hadn't seen the past two days but now was back.
"Daenerys might be my niece, but you are my family. My family is in King's Landing, and I will do anything to protect them from harm," she confessed.
Her words were said with certainty, not a moment of hesitation because she didn't. Daenerys was her niece and she was her family, but she would not betray Tywin and their children, risk of them getting killed by the dragons. She would, however, try to stop Daenerys from trying to reclaim the throne if she ever tried. There were many ways she could defend her family, without truly choosing sides or spilling blood in the end.
Tywin grabbed her neck but he did not harm her nor did he try to choke her. He brought her closer to him, their chests almost brushing, but he did let her have the tiniest of gap between them. He looked at her with that prideful and pleased look that only she truly had the chance to get, and it made her knees weak. Sometimes she truly hated her body and how easily it was for him to get through her defences and her pride, without even truly trying.
Her answer was the one he was expecting, the one he wished to hear, and by the gods did it feel good to know that his wife was truly back.
"Good girl," he said in a husky tone and kissed her, with the same dominance and force he always did.
Those two words made her knees almost buckle and she did not resist him when he pulled her even closer by the neck, to the point she was pressing against him, and he kissed her. She closed her eyes at the very same second it all started and returned the kissing action, savouring the taste of his lips and tasting the faint traces of sweet wine on them from his last glass of wine not so long ago.
Her arms moved to his chest for some support, fists holding the front of his tunic in a futile attempt to regain some control. By the Valyrian Gods, did she love that man, and she knew it very, very well.
She let him take the lead and she willingly parted her lips to allow his tongue entrance while she tilted her head to the side just a bit. She could feel him forcing her head back from the force of the kiss and she arched her back subconsciously, pressing her body even more against him as her insides felt on it. Any thought or plan she had at that moment vanished as she melted into the action and memorized the moment, not truly caring at that moment what would come tomorrow, for only now seemed to matter to her.
For only him and him alone truly mattered.
His hands held her neck and waist close, his hungry kisses quickly moved towards the side of her neck and his whispered praise when she craned her neck for him, allowing him to take his pick on which part of her neck to mark next. She obeyed silently, her own hands roaming with boldness and eagerness to undress him, but he grabbed her wrists to stop her; chuckling faintly at her actions before he returned to devour her throat, while the hand on her waist simply moved between her legs and under her night-dress. His fingers moved exactly where he knew they made her even weaker, while she was trapped to stand and lean against him, fully at his mercy.
He would have his chance first before he would give her what she truly wanted and what he also wanted but saved it for last. For now, he would enjoy leaving new marks on her skin since the old ones had faded away. For now, he would enjoy savouring her until she was wet and weak for him. Only then, he would take her like he always did. He never, not once, did he rush to satisfy his carnal desires without giving her a chance to prepare first, without getting the chance to hear her begs and pleas as she was willing to submit and give up all of her control to him and him alone.
Trystan's Chambers, Red Keep - King's Landing, Crown Lands - The Following Day
The Young Lion had a rough night, not able to sleep after witnessing a red-from-crying Sansa returning from the docks with her handmaiden, clearly having learnt the news of her latest marriage match.
He had wished to comfort her or try another joke, hoping to make her laugh, but he only found himself watching from a distance. It was odd and funny to him, how he could be so brave in combat and yet hesitate to be a courteous man to her.
Eventually, realizing that he needed someone to talk to and help clear his mind from all those questions, he asked his mother to visit him.
This is how, right after breaking fast, the Dragoness had found her way into his chambers. She looked as radiant as ever in her red tight dress that pooled around her feet. The dress itself was a deep velvet red with a high collar but exposed a small part of her cleavage. There were silver designs across the line and edges of the dress and had a more mature and elegant style in general that simply fitted with her tied-up braided hair and her nicely aged, younger-looking face.
She had taken a seat behind his desk and listened to him, mostly to his questions while he marched up and down, unable to stand still after being forced to sit out of everything else and simply watch.
"I just don't understand, mother," he confessed, hands behind his back as he walked like a caged animal. "Marrying Lady Sansa to us is worthless while the Greyjoys hold the north. If we really wanted to secure it, why not marry me with one of Balon's daughters?"
Visenya watched him, seeing that there were things in his mind but one was bothering him the most. She suspected what that thing was, but she chose not to bring it up yet and instead focused on shedding some more light on the complicated politics that kept shifting with the ongoing war.
"You do not see the long-term plan, Trystan," she said in a soft tone, with no judgement whatsoever. "The Iron Born won't rule the north, they will just plunder it like they are raised to do. In the end, they will unite the Norther-men against them and that's where your father plans to use the marriage. For, at the end of the day, the child of Sansa will be a descendant of Ned Stark and leading a united North will be his birthright."
She knew her son was smart and both Tywin and her had done their best to educate him on politics and alliances and how to plan ahead. However, Trystan was still young and right now he was not dealing with a stable kingdom or small changes between houses but a never-stopping tide that could drown them if they took it lightly.
Plus, the boy was young and did not have the chance to attend a lot of meetings. She thought to suggest Tywin take Trystan with him to observe and learn more, although their ways of thinking mostly came from the years of experience they had on the topic.
Trystan passed a hand through his hair and looked outside his window, seeing the blue sea of the Port and the sailing ships in the distance.
"What would happen if we were to return her to Catelyn Stark? As a sign of peace? The North has no deals here, Robb's lords will wish to return home and this war can end?"
A small smile formed on her lips. "If that could be done, my son, the world would not be as complicated as it is," she said, leaving a small sigh. "Even if we are to return Lady Sansa to her mother, she will most likely be married off to one of the northern or Riverlords to shore up her brother's alliances. Especially now that the boy broke his engagement to the Frey."
This made the young Lion look at his mother. "He did? But why?" he asked, first time hearing it.
"He fell in love and married some sort of field medic. However, I wouldn't rest my hopes up, for there are still ways for the Frey to get their hands on the North through marriage," she said and motioned for her son to sit on his chair, which he silently obeyed. "Listen to me, my son, I understand your feelings for the young Stark girl but you need to be aware of them; especially with your father around."
Trystan was surprised to hear his mother openly stating that he had feelings for Sansa. He felt the need to scoff. He didn't have any feelings, other than those of courtesy and just feeling bad for her after all the torture she had been through.
"Mother, I...I do not have any feelings for Lady Sansa," he said, trying to change her mind. "I am simply trying to be mannered and decent around her like you taught me."
A small amused smile formed on her lips. "Do you say those words to persuade me or yourself, Trystan?" she asked, making him suddenly reflect on that. "You are my son and I know you more than you think," she continued, making him look even more conflicted while he chose to stay silent for now. "Why don't we try something?"
This made him fully focus on her. "Try what, mother?"
"Lady Sansa has been through a lot because of our family. If she is to be married and become a lion, let alone carry a child...let us at least help her with that," she suggested, earning a confused head tilt from his son like a clueless puppy. This amused her, seeing that despite the growing years, her son was still young and naive to certain things. "The morning after the wedding, let us all breakfast together. She can get to know us and we will get to know her, show her that not everyone is truly that bad."
The young Lion did not comment on it but was clearly thinking about it. Such a plan could work, a chance to at least show Sansa that not all lions are bad. Sure, Cersei could be mean but with their father around, she would behave.
And their father was not going to be rude without a reason nor verbally harm her if she did not provoke him. It would also allow his mother to lead the conversation, perhaps helping Sansa see that this marriage is not as depressing and bad as she sees it, which might be, but they can help her see it a little bit differently.
Perhaps if she did manage that, then she would survive longer between the Lions. Because, at the end of the day, the pack could be ruthless; even when it came to each other. The only reason why his mother had survived was because the scales of a dragon were tougher than the claws and teeth of a lion.
"You think Father will allow that?" he finally asked, hope glowing in his green eyes.
"I will persuade him. You leave him to me and make sure to prepare her and Tyrion for when the time comes," she added.
The way she so confidently said it had Trystan worried a little bit. He knew his mother could influence his father and that she had her way to get people to do what she wanted in the end...but the fact remained that she was not going to talk to some common Lord.
She would have to talk and persuade their father to agree to such an idea and breakfast with a Wolf, even though by then that Wolf would wear the cloak of a Lion.
He had the utmost confidence in her, but he did also worry for her, knowing that his father was not an easy man to handle and there were times that even she could not make him yield.