True. Now, Brynden, my wife trusts you to aid us and I know you and trust your judgment. So tell us, what are we heading into in King's Landing? Do you have any idea why the Lannisters are stretching their muscles?"
"It isn't so much stretching their muscles as acting with muscles they already have. Robert is a fantastic general and was an excellent warrior," Brendan said calmly, "but as a king he is a figurehead, at best. I wouldn't say he's a horrible king. We've had worse, obviously, but he doesn't really rule."
Ned frowned sadly, while Ranma merely grunted, making a get on with it gesture. Brynden went on. "The real power is the Council. The King's Hand wields quite a bit of power but even he must answer to the Council. It will be imperative for us to discover where they all stand. Ser Barristan is on the council, but rarely speaks up, Renly is master of law, but spends as much time as he can get away with in the Reach. It is rumored he has a lover there but no one knows for certain. He can be counted on to promote the King's interest, but he isn't actually very learned in law. 'Tis rumored he is more a moderating influence than anything else but he also looks out for his own interests."
"And he's the one the King left as regent?" Ranma asked, addressing both the older men. "Is that why?"
Eddard frowned. "Renly was left as regent because Robert favors him over Stannis and trusts him. As regent, his power would be limited but I wonder what if anything he has made of Jon Arryn's death."
"I have no idea but there has been no news of any other upheaval since Lord Arryn's death." Brynden replied. "Stannis is master of Ships but his duties often have him away from the council, as well. With Stannis, it really is his duty. That man takes all his duties seriously and can be found in Dragonstone ruling there or with the fleet. A decent power base but not a political or monetary one, made worse by the fact that all know of the bad blood between Stannis and Robert. That bad blood was made worse, at least, according to rumor, by your opponent over him as Hand, Ned."
"I've heard from Maester Luwin in our studies that Renly was given Storm's End over the older brother but never what caused the bad blood between Stannis and Robert in the first place."
Eddard winced, knowing this wouldn't go over well. "For one, they are just simply too different in personality to get along. For another, Stannis led the assault that took Dragonstone from the Targaryen holdouts but failed to capture and kill the last two children of the Mad King, Viserys and Daenerys. Daenerys was born on the island."
"So he hates his brother for not killing two children of the family that wronged him. Lovely." Ranma growled.
"His hatred for all things Targaryen is indeed all consuming." Brynden quipped, trying to lighten the mood before going on. "Grand Maester Pyrcelle is the spokesmen of the Citadel but is known to be a political animal, almost as corrupt as the High Septon, which might mean he has been bought by Lannister gold."
"Okay, the High Septon is corrupt too? Oh, septa Mordane is not going to be pleased." Ranma didn't really like the septa much but he respected her power of faith and the fact she was devoted to her charges and said faith.
"I can't say I know the lady. Next is Petyr Baelish, Lord Arryn's appointment to master of coins. I… I have no idea about him, his loyalties these days, or how good he is at his job. It was a surprise appointment, though I believe Petyr is intelligent enough to do a good job. He… he will be on the watch for anything that can be used to his own advantage but I just can't say with any truth where that will take him or if he will aid us for loyalties sake. Oh, the Queen is known to take part of the council sessions, if informally. "
"So let me get this straight, the council is the power behind the throne. On said council, we've got two who are sometimes absent and possibly not on our side, one who is, at best, playing his own game, a Queen who has possibly bought another councilor who, again, is playing her own game, and a eunuch with pedophile tendencies who, a third time, is playing his own game. Needless to say, these games are for their own good, rather than the good of Westeros as a whole or us in particular. Ouch!" Ranma winced, remembering all too clearly Cersei's warning about the game of thrones.
He kept worrying at that problem and the growing suspicion that the Queen was in fact the most dangerous of their opponents, at least in the short term. On the outside, Ranma continued to listen intently as Brynden discussed what else he knew, which, alas, read more as a series of rumors than anything else. Why the Lannisters were stretching their muscles, he did not really know, though he had heard that Jon Arryn was looking into the King's bastards. That made Ned frown but that gave him a starting point. Brynden finished up with, "I have some contacts in King's Landing in the poor sections and the harbor, so I will be able to find out more when we get there."
Ranma groaned again, causing the two older men to chuckle darkly. None of them were looking forward to the end of their journey now but were willing to go on. The next day, Brynden joined the party.
From then on the journey became much more fun interesting for Ranma, with Brynden and Ranma getting to know one another. The old knight and Ned also took turns to begin testing Ranma's geographic knowledge at random. They made up military scenarios for him and Joffrey to solve. Robert too wanted to see his eldest son's military ability.
Robert soon let off on it, realizing that his son didn't show the aptitude for anything martial Ranma did. His beliefs were too unrealistic and too vainglorious. Joffrey fully believed that as crown prince he was unbeatable, and that conviction bled out into his view on strategy and anything else.
Ranma on the other hand was quick, always on the lookout for tricks to use to minimize his own casualties while smashing his enemies.
At Robert's behest Tommen joined these little lessons but didn't seem to take them as seriously as he should, which Robert put down to his age. Still and all, he was well pleased with how his youngest was turning out on this trip, glad to see at last one of his legitimate sons was acting almost like a son of his should, even if he still didn't look like him.
OOOOOOO
"He killed what!?" Lady Catelyn asked, her eyebrows rising in astonishment as she looked at young Meera Reed, who, along with her brother, had arrived with several carts, apparently carrying the skin and bones of a single lizard lion. "What in the world was he doing?"
"I know not why or even how he appeared, milady, but Ranma saved my life. That monster was close to finishing me off and it had killed several dozen hunters before me." Meera said, still kneeling in front of where Catelyn sat next to Bran in the main hall of Winterfell. Now that Bran was awake, there was no reason to continue to use the healing hall as the center of the keep's business so life had returned to more normal lines. The only real difference was that it was Bran sitting in the Lord's seat, rather than his father or older brother.
Jon looked up from reading the note from his brother, smiling faintly. "I hope that you are up to the challenge, Mikken? From what I hear lizard lion skin grows tougher as they age, something like this, it would be as good as plate mail."
"Aye, Jon, t'would, and would be as flexible as leather. Perfect fer your style or that of the lass and the rest of you wolf-sworn." Mikken was an older man, with a balding head and short cropped white beard. Still, his shoulders were broad and he was skilled in his craft, acting as both blacksmith and armorer. He was skilled enough to make Fang for Arya, Theon's ugly short sword, and Jon's short swords. None but Fang were true challenges but he was eager for the chance to work with such an exotic material as the lizard lion skin. He had been called into the hall when Meera arrived.
"In that case, when you have a good idea of what you want to do, tell me when you want me and I'll make time for fittings." Jon responded. Arya pulled on his sleeve from where she was leaning against the wall next to him behind the Lord's seat. He shook his head, motioning that she was still growing a point that caused her to nod agreement yet pout at the same time.
Sitting next to his mother, Bran ignored all this, trying hard not to look at Jojen, who was staring at him with wide eyes. Something in them worried Bran, as if Jojen represented something but he couldn't tell what. All he knew was that it had something to do with the odd dreams he had been having off and on. They were so confusing he didn't really like thinking about them but Jojen's stare was telling him that he might have to face them, and what they meant, in the near future.
"Arya, show Jojen and Meera to their rooms, they'll be staying with us for a time." Catelyn said, bringing Bran back to the here and now. Jojen looked as if he wanted to speak, but his sister hurried him out of the hall, seeing the Winterfell maester waiting along one wall with a raven message in hand. He kept looking at Bran as the two followed Arya out, trailed by Mikken, rubbing his hands excitedly.
Bran looked to his mother to see if he could be excused but she shook her head. "I realize you don't have much to contribute Bran but as the Stark of Winterfell, you must take part in these discussions." The young boy nodded glumly, reaching down to pat Summer's head where it lay in his lap.
Now that the Reeds and the blacksmith were gone, the group became much less formal, with Jon pulling chairs around to form a loose circle around the Lord's seat. In fact, they wouldn't have been formal in the first place if not for Meera being here to speak for her family. For that there were certain formalities that had to be addressed. Catelyn still was in charge, of course, and she proved this by speaking first, though the topic wasn't as serious as normal. "What does Ranma have to say, Jon?" Needless to say she had already read the message from her husband, which was more of a love letter than anything serious, mentioning offhand the fact that nothing untoward had occurred and that her children were getting on with the Baratheon children.
"Beyond giving us all our love and hoping that Bran has recovered by this point it says, and I quote, 'Traveling is slow. The King is a drunk, his eldest a stuck up ass, but the two youngsters are nice enough. Sansa is still acting lovestruck. I miss Winterfell already, oh, and I killed a lizard lion.'" Jon replied drolly, causing the people around him to laugh. "My brother has never been good at communicating via the written word but it does get the gist across. Unfortunately, I bet that any trouble will have happened after they left the Neck, so this note really doesn't tell us anything."
After that moment however the meeting turned to other things, with Maester Luwin relaying the messages that had arrived by raven. "Lord Mormont has sent word. Smalljon came ahead to the Wall after setting up the first group of smallfolk in the Gift. They have been set up in a single area and are building a holdfast, around which their community is going to be kept small, so that they can pull back into it at need. The farmers report that they can begin to plant right away but, of course, it will take time before they can harvest anything."
Luwin sighed, shaking his head. "Given the weather being colder here, I fear we may soon see a real winter, unless it is a false winter like years past of course. Even so, they might be able to get in a single harvest before autumn is declared. I would caution everyone to begin hoarding now."
"It will be a real winter." Bran and Jon said together. They looked at one another while around them their family and advisors all wondered about why the brothers both sounded so certain. Jon shook himself and smiled at the old maester. "Your advice is good and we have already informed the farmers of Stark lands to begin doing so."
Luwin nodded and went on. "Smalljon also said his party was attacked in the Gift by a large band of wildling raiders, a hundred strong. He sustained losses, as did the Norrey scouts, but they were able to get some information about the King Beyond the Wall from them. His name is Mance Ryder and Commander Mormont says he is a former Night's Watchman."
Jon and Ser Rodrick both winced. At the younger man's nod Rodrick elaborated, his voice gruff. "That will mean the wildlings will be better organized and led than they have been under other Kings. He may also know where the Wall's defenses are weakest and concentrate his assault. It may prove to be a very good thing that Lord Tyrion went with our forces, his knowledge of siege craft might be the decisive factor."
Catelyn scowled at the mention of the Lannister Imp, but Jon moved the discussion on quickly, seeing that Luwin was done. "The messenger I sent to the Wull clan came back. He reports that the Wull has no idea how the men got through their lands, and are willing to 'give us geld' to repay their dishonor. To that end he has promised 'full dross', a full whelming, of his men if we call on them." Jon still thought something or someone else had aided the ex-Bolton men, but wasn't willing to say it out loud nor could he prove it in this instance.
His report brought Catelyn out of her thoughts about the Lannisters and their plots. "That would be what, five hundred men?" Rodrick and Jon both nodded, that was about what they would estimate the Wulls or the Flints, the two most powerful clans, could put out. "I don't think we should call on them for the Wall, the mountain clans can't mobilize as fast as we can and they would be a burden on our foodstuffs the entire way North."
"I would recommend we send another messenger and ask the Wull, the clan chief, to come down and speak to us in person here, to tell him of the news further south, like we have the other Lords only a bit more. That way we can show we still have confidence in him and his clan, which may make them react even faster to our summons, if we do need them." Jon interjected.
That made sense and the conversation continued. Bran took part in the next topic, his eyes alight with eagerness. Since he had recovered, Bran had decided to mold his thoughts around a conversation he had with Ranma, about not needing to be a warrior, instead he would be a builder. He had taken over designing the necessary pulley systems to get barges down the waterfalls that broke up the White Knife, corresponding with one of Lord Manderly's surveyors to do the same thing in Manderly territory. He also was planning ahead for the days when the river would freeze and had devised ways to still use the waterway even so, with the barges fitted with huge runners.
Catelyn and Jon both smiled at the young boy's eagerness, hoping his plans worked half as well as he thought they would. Catelyn took over then, telling how the Glass Garden, a glass enclosed garden heated by the hot springs underneath Winterfell, was going to be expanded and turned over entirely to the growth of foodstuffs. With that, hunting, and careful rationing, Winterfell could feed itself and the small town around it even in the depths of winter. The plan had come from her and maester Luwin, as well as designs found in the library from days long past.
As the talk continued, Jon leaned back, letting the others dominate the discussion as he thought about other things. He thought about the White Walkers, those inhuman foes beyond the Wall. He thought of the wildlings and what it would take to make peace with them, if it was possible at all, because he knew that they and the White Walkers were going to be only two of many enemies that reared their heads soon. On the heels of that thought, Jon wondered what was really going on down South. He wondered about Sansa, his father, and brother and what they might be facing, what the future had in store for them all. Then he vowed once more to himself, that come what may, when they returned, and he was certain they would return, Ranma would see to that, that the North would still be here. Winterfell would still be here, their family would still be here to welcome them home, strong as ever. For though we are far apart, like a pack of wolves, we are together still…
OOOOOOO
The rest of the journey to King's Landing passed swiftly without any more additions to the party or changes to the daily routine. Robert now insisted that Ranma and Tommen travel with him at the front of the cavalcade, which angered the Queen, who didn't like her baby boy being out of sight like that but Robert put his foot down sharply. He continued to try in his ham-handed way to reach out to the boy, not really doing anything with him but regaling him with tales of his own early life and including him in the 'discussions' that Eddard and Brynden tossed Ranma's way about geography and warfare.
Ranma enjoyed himself during what amounted to tactics and strategy classes given by three of the best. Say what you would about his personality, Robert was a very good general and his problems, despite not being as varied as Ned's or Brynden's, were built around real life questions. He always wanted Ranma and Tommen to do better than the reality had been in those battles of his youth or ancient history, even with him or the others in their party, including Jaime at times, taking over the opposing side. He treated it like a game, but his eyes were shrewd as he watched Ranma and his youngest son, most particularly Joffrey on those few occasions the boy would make an appearance. Of course, Ranma took to this like any other kind of combat and he learned just as much about the King and Jaime as they learned about the way he said he would do things.
The questions that Brynden asked the 'kids' were in particular very tough, with most of them covering small unit tactics. Small unit tactics, along with skirmish actions of all sorts and battles in hard terrain, were the Blackfish's specialty. After the first such question, Brynden always made a point of saying that Ranma couldn't just power his way through them by himself, which had been Ranma's answer. When he tried to bring the boy to task he was surprised that Ned backed his son up, stating quietly that he could do that.
That night, the two Stark men filled their kinsmen in on some of Ranma's abilities, though not all of them, since Ranma had gone to some lengths to hide many of them from everyone, even Jon and his father. For example, his new ki armor technique would come as a severe shock to anyone as would the ability to project his ki as various weapons and into his own weapons to make them deadlier.
They didn't give Brynden any kind of explanation for where he got his abilities but the Tully knight seemed to take that in stride. His loyalty was to his family and to his personal honor. So long as Ranma was both family and did nothing to dishonor the family then Brynden would have no problem with them.
While Ranma and his father took these conversations seriously, regardless of how it was treated by everyone else, Tommen simply thought it was a fun kind of game and, while he learned, he in no way took it seriously. Still, it was telling that his strategies were never as… removed from reality as Joffrey's answers remained. Tommen cared for his troops and smallfolk and all his answers tried to protect those two groups. He rarely won because of this but at least his questions didn't drive Robert to yell at him as he often yelled at Joffrey for his irrational belief in his own infallibility.
Speaking of Joffrey he had, thankfully in Ranma's opinion, backed off from his enmity for Ranma. He was actually acting quite nicely these days to everyone, not just around his parents or those of equal stature, unfortunately solidifying Sansa's 'love' for him. Ranma still didn't trust him. His eyes never matched his new attitude and Ranma caught him sometimes, when Joffrey thought he was unobserved, glaring at Ranma as well as Fenris. Still, he didn't seem prepared to push things any longer.
In reality, Joffrey was playing the waiting game and was willing to spend most of his time in the carriage, where he could feel Myrcella watching his every move, something he despised but could do nothing about. Myrcella ignored his attempts to hurt her under the guise of 'stretching' and kicking her, or punching her when Sansa and the other's were not watching. The one time he had tried to do the same to Tommen when he joined them at Cersei's demand, she pushed him, spoiling his aim. The girl had gained courage somehow, though Joffrey had no idea where it came from.
Still, they were nearing King's Landing, near the place of power for him and the other Lannisters, a battleground where he had all the advantages, as well as the backing of several powerful figures. Once there, he could find ways of causing trouble for the young Stark, without it being traced back to him. He, Myrcella, Tommen, and several others were still Joffrey's targets, but he could wait. If there was one thing this trip had taught him, it was to hide his true feelings. He owed that's to his mother turning on him so suddenly about the direwolf issue so many weeks back, though she was still his staunchest supporter, thankfully.
He even understood what she was saying about wanting to wait but felt his mother was wrong. Cersei didn't want to make Ranma an enemy of her family unless she absolutely had to. She hoped to hide certain truths from the Starks and thus keep from open conflict, where Ranma's abilities, those she could see, scared her. She was astonished they didn't scare Jaime or any of the others but still believed that the boy was a threat they should do their best not to face openly.
Joffrey knew that they were already enemies. He did not know the terrible truth that Cersei was hiding, that neither he nor his siblings were in fact the King's children. He was simply looking out for himself. A king could not survive, in his opinion, if there was someone nearby who burned brighter than him, who was more important, more powerful, than the king. Ranma, by his very nature, gathered to him the attention that should've been Joffrey's, something he could not allow.
While the Queen knew Eddard and Brynden were the true threats to her plans (and her life, future, and everything else), Joffrey was single-mindedly focused on Ranma and the effect he was having on those around him, particularly his siblings. The elder Stark, Joffrey could care less about, feeling the adults would handle the adults.
Ranma knew nothing about his enemy's thoughts or that he had gained an enemy for life rather than an egotistical boy's ire. As they started on the last day of their journey, Ranma exited the tent he shared with his great uncle and father to see King's Landing, visible in the distance. It sat in the land like a squat, spiked hill with three tops.
About an hour after the party set off, Ranma and the others could see a band of mounted men coming down the road toward them. They had seen traffic for much of their journey going in both directions but normally the scouts were easily up to 'convincing' the rest of the traffic to make way. This time, Ranma could see that they allowed this group through.
About twenty minutes later, the group had come within hailing distance. The man in the lead, who wore a suit of enameled green armor and a helmet with a pair of golden antlers, raised a hand in greeting, shouting aloud. "Hail, brother. I see you have escaped the cold of the North without any trouble and brought back your prize is well! Hello Ned, how are you?" The man speaking was Renly Baratheon, Robert's youngest brother.
Ned shook his head, bemused as usual by the way Renly tried to be so friendly to everyone around him. The two of them had met many times, but Ned had never been friends with the younger Baratheon. Eddard was closer in temperament to Stannis than Renly, but at least he felt that Renly was loyal to Robert, which was enough.
As they got closer, Ranma could make out more of his features. Renly was a handsome man with neatly combed black hair falling to his shoulders and light blue eyes. His body was trim, yet not muscular, and his face clean shaven, much like Ranma's own.
When they were within touching distance, the two brothers leaned over their mounts to clasp arms. Renly looked down at where Ranma was standing between the King and the horse carrying the littlest prince. He wondered why it was Tommen up here rather than Joffrey, though any of the three being near Robert was a surprise. "And who is the boy? Surely, you don't need help to get off of your horse, Robert…" he paused, as Fenris loped up from the rest of the party, coming to a stop beside Ranma with his tongue lolling out a little. Now nearly the size of a small pony, the direwolf looked simply monstrous in comparison to most wolves or dogs, a fact that caused many of the knights behind Renly to grab their swords in shock.
At his brother's gob smacked expression, Robert laughed, waving one hand expansively at the wolf and Ranma. "This is Ranma Stark, Ned's oldest boy, and that is his pet, Fenris. Large, isn't it? Still the boy's got it well-trained, never saw the like."
One of the knights laughed quietly. He was an exceptionally handsome young man with long, flowing brown hair framing a face without blemish or mark, dominated by golden eyes. His armor had what looked like jeweled flowers on it at points.
The carriage had come up as the party stopped and spread out. Within, Sansa and Jeyne began to talk excitedly to one another as they stared with blushing faces at Ser Loras Tyrell, the Knight of Flowers, a living legend thanks to his beauty and gallantry.
Loras flashed the carriage a bright smile and a bow, causing the girls inside to nearly swoon, but he had already turned back to Ranma. "So you're the one who might be marrying my sweet sister? I don't know whether to congratulate you, warn you if you hurt her I'll kill you, or commiserate with you. Do not get me wrong. Margaery is a great beauty and very intelligent but she abhors the very idea of cold, having never actually felt it in her life. She was not well pleased to hear that she might be marrying you and thus be forced to move to Winterfell."
Ranma turned to him from looking up at Renly with one eyebrow raised but his glance sharpened on the other young man. "You must be the Rose Knight I've heard so many songs and stories about, most of them from the two blushing maidens in the carriage, admittedly." Ranma bowed slightly but didn't remove his eyes from the man. The stories were equally split in talking about the Tyrell knight's handsomeness and his deadliness with the blade or lance. Despite how he looked, this man held himself like a knight, and was much more dangerous than he appeared.
Loras, too, looked down at Ranma, his gaze changing from humorous to searching. The two of them began to talk, mostly commiserating about sisters much to Sansa's chagrin. This was a cover for analyzing each other as young men who were certain in their strength often did with one another.
After only about ten minute's observation, Ranma formed a positive opinion of Loras. Underneath his handsome good looks there was a blade, waiting and ready. He was almost like Jaime in terms of skill but nowhere near as cocksure or blind as the older man.
On the other hand, in Ranma's opinion Renly was simply a good-looking man who was well spoken, but Ranma felt he cared a bit too much about appearances and seeming. Charismatic certainly, but soft. He had dismissed Ranma after that first gaping glance at Fenris, which was rather stupid. He seemed much more interested in the fact that Tommen was up here and that Robert seemed to be almost friendly to the boy.
Loras was different from Jaime however in one, much bigger factor. He hadn't crossed blades with Ranma, yet, and so was forming of his opinion of him through his words and his manner. No tales except for one bard song had reached this far south of the Young Wolf but even observing Ranma for a few moments, Loras could tell that he was something special. Every movement seemed controlled, every racing step certain and sure as he jogged along with the horses when the party began to move on with the knights of Reach accompanying Renly added to the cavalcade.
"Tell me," he said casually, looking at the boy as he raced along with his warhammer on his back (due to an incident with Tommen trying to lift the thing and hurting himself, which nearly gave the queen ammunition to cancel his lessons), "are you planning to enter the tournament?"
"What tournament?"
"Robert loves tourneys as much as he loves hunting and other things." Loras replied smiling faintly. "He is bound to want to hold a tourney to celebrate your father's appointment as his Hand."
Ranma looked up at him on his horse and the two men shared calculating glances. "And are you entering this tournament?"
"I would be proud to enter and win glory for my family." The handsome Tyrell knight said smiling faintly. "And the women do love it so when I win and share my roses with the crowd."
The younger man nodded his head with a smile. "In that case, I will make certain to enter. It will be fascinating to cross swords with you."
"The words you spoke are mine as well." Loras responded with his own smile. The conversation turned once again to other things, the differences between the Reach and the Riverlands, the number of tourneys that Loras had entered before. In turn, Ranma mentioned what had been happening in his life, giving a little more detail about the Bolton incident than he normally would, as well as the run in the wolf-sworn had with Wildlings.
While this conversation was going on, a much more guarded conversation was going on nearby between Ned, Renly, and Robert. "So, has anything happened while you were acting as regent for the King?" Ned was trolling for information here, trying to see if anyone had taken advantage of the King's absence to push their own agendas. He still hadn't really come to grips with how hands-off Robert was as King. Anyone could push their own agendas while he was there, save for the most… obvious machinations.
"Nothing much." Renly replied, smiling faintly, his face and voice giving nothing away. "My brother, Stannis, once more retreated to Dragonstone a few days gone, much like he had when you 'slighted' him by not choosing him as your Hand. Robert grunted irritably at the memory of their brother's anger at this supposed slight, though his lips twitched at the droll emphasis Renly put on the word. "Although he had returned to the city a few weeks after you left, Robert. Some kind of business he was conducting here, I know not what. Just that he spent a lot of time down by the docks, so I assume it had to do with the fleet in some manner."
That news interested Ned somewhat, as he wondered what Stannis was up to but didn't help him much. "Anything else happen?"
"No nothing else, save the normal humdrum business of the kingdom running itself. Though I am afraid you will have little time to get used to the workload when we formally install you as Hand, Ned. I imagine you will, alas, find a lot of paperwork left over from Jon's sudden demise."
Though Renly said it in a flippant manner, this line brought attention to Jon Arryn's death, which was what Ned had been angling the conversation towards. With that line of thought, Ned responded quickly, yet casually, remembering Brynden's warnings to keep his thoughts close. "I am afraid you are right about that. Paperwork is one of the world's uncomfortable certainties. Just so I am prepared as I can be, do you have any idea what he was working on before he died? Any new taxes or anything like that?"
"Not at all." Renly replied, chuckling. "I was not in the city at the time. I was in the Reach conducting business there."
"Business between the sheets!" Robert guffawed. "You may be subtle about it, brother, but everyone knows you have a lover somewhere in Highgarden! We all thought it was Margaery Tyrell, but since Cat was able to convince that old ass Mace to see about a marriage between her and Ranma, I've been wondering who it is that's caught your eye enough to keep you traipsing back to Highgarden every chance you get!"
Renly chuckled and waved the question off, his entire body giving the impression he couldn't be bothered to answer the question. Ned sensed this was a new twist on an old topic of conversation for the two. Renly turned back to Ned and said formally. "I have no idea what Jon was working on. His sudden demise was unexpected and quick but he was an old man after all."
This gave Eddard no clue whatsoever about what Renly was thinking, though his apparent friendship with Robert was a mark in his favor. Ned really had no belief that the man was plotting against his brother. But, whether or not Renly was not sharing information about Jon's death because he didn't have any or because he was afraid to share it, was more than Eddard could say.
Ned wondered how to once more bring the conversation around to this topic but Robert quickly grabbed the reigns of the conversation. "Never mind that, we must have a tournament! I want to start to plan for it the moment we can, to celebrate Ned becoming my Hand! I bet that son of yours is going to join up the moment he can. He's been chomping at the bit for something physical to do this entire journey!"
"Though I will say," Robert laughed, looking over at Tommen, "he's had a good effect on the kids or, at least ,two of the three." He guffawed again, but this time the sound was sharper, less humorous, and more biting. "Some brats you just can't teach, apparently."
Renly raised an eyebrow and nodded cordially at the younger boy who smiled back at his uncle rather wanly, since Renly had never used his considerable charm to get close to the boy or any of the trio of children, really, seeing them more as pawns in the great game than family. The fact that Robert was being so affable towards one of his sons was beyond astonishing to Renly. Still, he took it in stride for now.
Around him Brynden looked at the rest of the party shrewdly, paying particular attention to where Jamie was talking quietly to the leader of the Gold Cloaks, the King's Landing City Watch, Janos Slynt. It seemed that the Kingslayer had his own man to talk to about what had been going on in their absence. He wondered where that man stood and decided that he would assume Slynt was a Lannister supporter from now on until proven otherwise.
He tried to sidle his horse backwards through the still moving cavalcade but the men noticed him coming and the conversation halted. Brynden stopped moving his horse in that direction, leaning downward as if he had thought his bridle was loose to cover the motion. Ranma looked back at him before responding to his father order to once again get up onto his horse.
By now, they were closer to the city and Ranma could make out more features, especially against the backdrop of the ocean. The sprawling size of it for one thing was astonishing to him in comparison to the only other city he had seen in this reality, White Harbor. The walls were not as impressive and there seemed to be shanty towns built right up beside the walls on all the sides he could see and he could tell even from here that houses were built right up next to them on the inside, whereas in White Harbor, the wall was surrounded by an area given over to defense, in the form of barracks training areas and rally points. Rising out of the sprawl of the main city were three hills, upon which sat two castles and some ruins, a dome collapsed in a way that was visible from here.
Soon he could tell something else. Fenris noticed it first, followed promptly by Lady, where she was running alongside the carriage carrying her mistress. Both direwolves whined and snuffled, wrinkling their noises as if in disgust. Fenris whined, looking up at his bonded, who shook his head, smells not coming over their link as well as other senses. A few hours passed and Ranma no longer needed to try to figure out what his bonded wolf was smelling. "By the old gods, what the hell!"
The southerners all laughed at him and the other Northerners who had never been to King's Landing before. The city might be the largest city in Westeros but it was also the most squalid, and above all, smelly. It reeked of refuse, excrement, and innumerable other horrible smells. Perfume wasn't a affectation here. The Queen had long ago learned to liberally dab it on to combat the smell of the city.
Ranma had no such defense and he nearly reeled in the saddle, as did many of the other Northmen. Yet they gamely continued on, slowly becoming acclimatizing to it. He even chuckled a little shaking his head as he looked ahead at the city, remembering a line from a movie he had loved the few times he had been able to escape his fiancées to see it in the theaters. "Kings Landing, you'll never find a greater hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious."
Loras heard him and laughed aloud, bringing some attention from the others in their party, but he waved them off chuckling a little. "Truer words were never spoken, young Stark. You must indeed be cautious here."
Not an hour later, they were at the city, the horns blaring the Kings return, the gates to the city, always open for traffic which never truly stopped, now lined with Gold Cloaks to keep the crowds back, two lines of them heading deeper into the city. It was as they were passing underneath the walls that Ranma began to feel that his life was once more going to change and possibly for the worst.
End chapter