Wolf of NúmenorLouen_LeoncoeurChapter 15: Bastard , broken hearts and betrayal
Summary:
Margaery makes her choice Lord Baelish begins to strum the spiders web and the Tyrells show their true colors
Notes:
I had hope to make Margaery more selfish but I wasn't sure either way so which would you people prefer my original idea would have been she simply chose the crown of her volition but leave a comment
Chapter Text
With Renly's death, they knew it was just a matter of time before all the men who came with them declared themselves for Stannis, so Jon, Loras, Robar, and those who still followed them quickly made their way back to Bitterbridge, but not before they allowed Loras to bury Renly in a spot in the woods.
They thought that Stannis would have them executed for being members of his brother's guard, but no such action was taken. All the while, Loras was stricken with grief, and Jon understood; he even started blaming himself for Renly's death. Loras regretted killing Emmon is his rage, while Robar continued to claim that it was not Brienne that killed the king but Stannis. Robar stated that by saving him from Loras, he now owned a life debt to Jon, which Jon shrugged off. When they finally arrived, they were greeted by worried Margaery.
"What happened? Is the battle over?" Margaery asked as they got off their horses.
"No, there was no battle," Jon said sadly. "Renly is dead."
Margaery gasped. "How?"
"Robar claims Stannis killed Renly, while ser Emmon claimed is was Brienne,"
"I don't know her, but she seemed honest in her intention to serve Renly, and would Stannis really commit fratricide just to gain more men?"
"I don't know. Robar says that Lady Catelyn saw a shadow killing Renly."
"A shadow?"
"We aren't certain ourselves; all we know is that Stannis had some kind of sorceress with him when we parleyed."
"Magic?"
"Yes," said Jon.
"It's my fault; I should have been there for him; I could have saved him," Loras said.
Margaery walked up to her brother and embraced him. "You don't know that, if this was truly magic, then you could have died. Also, I could not endure losing you."
Jon followed Margaery, Loras, Garlan, and Robar to Margaery's tent, where they were seated at the large table, silence filling the ear. After a long moment, Garlan spoke.
"What do we do now?"
"I don't know," said Jon.
"What are our options?" asked Margaery.
"We can stay out of the war; joining Stannis is out of the question; maybe we could join with Jon's brother," Loras said.
"I don't know if it's up to us to decide," Garlan said.
"And what should we do then?" Loras asked.
"I don't know," Garlan answered. As they continued to contemplate their options, lord Tarly walked into the tent clad in full plate.
"Lord Tarly," Jon said with a bow of his head.
"What can we do for you?" asked Margaery.
"As you are aware, there are many soldiers in this camp that belong to the houses that now follow Stannis; I came here to ask what you intend to do with them."
"We could..." Jon started but was cut off by Loras.
"They betrayed their king, have them all killed or captured," Loras said, anger in his eyes.
"Loras," Jon said. Jon knew how his friend felt, but these men were not guilty of any crime; they were just following who they saw as their liege. Jon looked at Loras, hurt, hate, and lust for vengeance all presented on his face. Jon knew that nothing he could say now would dismay Loras; he could just hope that lord Tarly went easy on the poor men.
"They swore to follow Renly, and they betrayed him; they deserve to die for that." Lord Tarly did not say a word; he only nodded and left the tent. Soon the crays of battle echoed through the camp, lord Tarly making sure all of the Stannis supporters were either dead or in cages in a matter of hours. When an envoy from Stannis came demanding an oath of fealty, Loras immediately executed him.
Several more days past and some of the lords started leaving to return to their keeps. Margaery and Jon advised Loras to return to Highgarden to speak with Lord Mace on what to do but to their surprise, he was the one who arrived to greet them, lady Olenna with him.
"Father, what are you doing here?" Margaery asked, surprised.
"We heard what happened, so we came immediately," Mace answered.
Margaery looked at her grandmother. "Grandmother too?"
"Yes, I did child, I was concerned," Olenna said. Then a man's voice was heard coming for the carriage from where Olenna came out seconds before.
"Lady Margaery, you have my condolences," said Petyr Baelish as he stepped out and stood next to Mace.
"Lord Baelish?" Jon, Margaery, and Loras asked in surprise.
"Yes."
"What are you doing here?" Loras asked.
"I have been sent to negotiate with house Tyrell by Lord Tyrion."
"You were sent by the false king," Jon growled.
"No, lord Tyrion sent me, and you too have my condolences, Ser Jon, lord Eddard was a good man."
"Then why did no one help him?" Jon said, gripping his sword.
"Lord Eddard asked Janos Slynt and his city watch for aid in his coup, but the lord commander betrayed him in the last moment. Lady Sansa and I pleaded for lord Stark's life, and we thought that king Joffrey would let him live but what happened no one could predict. I tried to stop it, I swear, but the guards stopped me, and I watched as Lord Eddard died." Baelish said in a sincere tone, and Jon wanted to believe him.
"What about my sisters?" Jon asked.
"Lady Sansa is safe, I assure you that, but no one has seen lady Arya since Lord Eddard's arrest."
"That means she escaped," Margaery said enthusiastically.
"Gods, I hope so," Jon said.
"If you were so supportive of the Starks, then why are you not In chains as well?" Garlan asked.
"I had to swear my oath to king Joffrey to ensure that there was someone to watch over Lady Sansa. I spent my youth in Riverrun, and we were weary close. I did what I had to do to protect her daughter when no one else could."
Jon knew about Petyr being fostering with the Tullys, and he seemed on good terms with his father when they first met. To Jon, it appeared like lord Baelish really did try his best to help his father and sister. But the fact that he was sent here by their enemies unnerved him. "Why would they send him here?" Jon asked himself.
"I suggest we find somewhere to sit, my lords, or you will have to carry me," Olenna said. "Loras take care of the horses, would you," Loras nodded and did as asked by his grandmother. Margaery leads the way to her pavilion. As he and Robar were about to enter, Lord Baelish told them that they would have to wait outside, that this was between him and the Tyrells, unfortunately. Jon wanted to disagree and to enter, but the look that lord Mace gave him told Jon to stay outside. Lord Baelish walked inside and closed the tent's entrance, leaving Jon and Robar outside. Jon had a bad feeling about this; something was wrong.
"I don't like this," Robar said.
"Neither do I," Jon replied.
Margaery
As they entered the pavilion, her grandmother asked them to talk in private, so Margaery walked them over to a section of the pavilion cut off from the rest by a wall. Margaery sat behind a desk, and Olenna sat on a chair in front of her.
"What is it grandmother, tell me why lord Baelish is here?" Margaery asked in a stern tone.
"Lord Baelish is here to offer an alliance between our house and Baratheon."
"When did he change sides for Stannis?"
"I didn't mean that fool, I mean king Joffrey Baratheon."
Margaery looked at her grandmother, shocked. "Joffrey? You know as well as I that he is not a Baratheon."
"Where is the proof of that? All that we heard were the words of two men who wanted to be king. Joffrey is the king who sits on the throne."
"The Lannisters killed Jon's father, they imprisoned Sansa. How can you even think about something like that?"
"Renly is dead, and we need to pull ourselves out of the mud child if we don't, we just might join him. We need to look out for our own family."
"Father will never accept this."
Olenna shifted in her seat. "Your father has already agreed to it."
"What? He would not," Margaery said, shocked.
"He did; I made him see reason."
"My father would never betray Jon by siding with the people who took his family away from him."
"As I said, I made your father see reason, even he if was reluctant at first."
Margaery stared at her grandmother with contempt. "Neither I nor Loras nor Garlan will agree to this."
"You still wish to be queen, don't you? Well, a second hand was seen given to us, we help the Lannisters, and you will be wed to Joffrey and become his queen."
Margaery stood up, "I will never marry a monster," she shouted.
"You will be you want your little bastard to live," Olenna said in a calm tone. As soon as she heard her grandmother say it, fear engulfed her.
"What?"
"If you don't go through this deal, I will make certain that Jon has an accident."
"You wouldn't,"
"I would, child," Olenna sighed. "I know how this looks like, but I'm doing this for your own good. You are Margaery Tyrell, my granddaughter; you are destined for greater things than to be some bastard's plaything."
"I'm not this plaything, and I will never turn my back on him; I love him, and he loves me."
"I told you once before love does not get you far in this world. What will you do, run away with him, somewhere where no one can find you? You are a lady of noble birth, the daughter of the richest family in Westeros, how will you live, selling fruits in a market like a commoner. Your place is not at some bastard's side; you were born to be queen."
"I will not leave Jon."
"Then he shall not see the next sunrise," Now Margaery was starting to be terrified for Jon's life.
Margaery stared at her grandmother, tears in her eyes. "How can you be so cruel?"
"I'm not cruel, my child, I'm practical; you can't have both things you desire; we spoiled you to believe you can but not this."
"I will tell father."
"Go ahead, but know I also made it quite clear to him that his options are."
"Loras will stop you," Margaery said, and she knew she was starting to sound desperate.
"He won't have a chance because you will make the bastard leave once and for all if not."
"I will not push him away," Margaery said, tears flowing down her cheeks.
"Oh, for god's sake, child, you know your options, so chose, take the offer and the crown you always wanted and save the boy's life or don't take it and be responsible for his death." Margaery could not stop crying now, her grandmother had her in a corner, and she did not know what to do. Margaery's heart started breaking apart at the very thought of doing something like this to Jon, siding with those to kill his father, but she knew it was the best option for his survival. Olenna would make good on her promise, if not sooner than later.
"I...I….," Margaery said.
"What is your decision? Better make it quick, lord Baelish is waiting." If she did this, she would lose Jon, and he would hate her forever, but he will stay alive. Margaery felt her heartbreak, but she was not doing this for her; she would save Jon. She would do anything to save him, even this, that is how much she loves him.
"I... I…. I agree. I will take the deal," Margaery finally said.
"Good, I knew you would come around, now I suggest you clean yourself up and inform the bastard you the new arrangement and make sure he leaves.
"I-I will," Margaery said, and Olenna left the room. After Margaery made herself representable again, she walked out of the room and outside, finding Jon standing with Robar a few meters away from the entrance. He looked at her, and she almost started crying again. She approached them slowly, trying to keep herself composed. "Ser Robar, could you give us a moment, please?"
"Yes, your grace," the knight said, and she did not feel the joy in people calling her that it was a shame now.
"What is it Margaery, what did Lord Baelish say?"
"He offered an alliance between house Baratheon, Lannister, and Tyrell."
"What? Lord Mace would never take it."
"He did," Margaery said and could see the disbelief on Jon's face.
"Why?"
"They are the best option; they agreed to make me queen if we join them."
"Margaery… you wouldn't," Jon said, and she could feel her heartbreak even further.
"I did, I took the deal, I will be queen."
"How can you say that? They killed my father; they are holding my sister's captive." Jon garbed her by the shoulders. "I know you, Margaery, you don't really mean this; they are making you do this."
"They are not; I always wanted one thing more than anything, to be queen and that the Lannisters can give me that."
Jon let go of her and took a step back. "What about us? You know I cannot side with my father's killers."
"I know, and that's why you will leave."
"What?"
"You will leave and never return."
"You don't mean this; you love me as I love you."
"I don't love you, I never did; you were just a plaything," Margaery said and could see the words hit Jon like a stone.
"Margaery..." Jon said.
"I have a chance to be queen again and will pick that over a bastard any day."
"H-How can you say that?"
"I can because it's true, leave, and never show yourself in front of me again."
"Margaery..." Jon said, pleading.
"What are you waiting for? Leave."
"You don't mean this,"
Margaery took a step closer. "Get it in that stupid head of yours; I'm done with you, I'm to be queen, and I can't have you there to jeopardize it." Margaery could see the shock and pain on Jon's face, and she felt the same, her heartbreaking more every second.
"Is that how you truly feel?"
"Yes," Margaery said simply and watched as Jon bowed his head.
"As you wish, my lady," Jon said, and she watched as he walked over to his horse, mounted it, and rode into the night. When she could no longer see him, she fell to her knees and started crying again, the onlookers looking at her concerned, but she did not pay them any attention; she was too busy drowning in her grief.
She just pushed away the one man she truly loved, and it hurt her more than any pain she experienced in her life.
Loras
"You would give us what?" Loras shouted.
"Crown for lady Margaery," lord Baelish said.
Loras slammed his fist at the table. "You dear come here and offer us an alliance with the wary people who started this war, who killed good men."
"King Joffrey did make some questionable choices at the start of his rain, but he is wiser now, I assure you."
"Questionable choices? He killed lord Eddard!"
"Quiet Loras," said Olenna, glaring at him, and he returned the look back.
"No, I won't be quiet, yes I did not know lord Eddard that well, but I know Jon, and by the looks of it, they were the same, good and honourable, not traitors."
"Eddard is dead; that does not concern us," Olenna said.
"Does not concern us, does not concern us!" Loras said, angry, "How can you say that!" Loras turned to his father, "Father, you knew lord Eddard; you fought together. You can't possibly agree to this." The lord of Highgarden did not say anything at first, just looked at his son.
"That's the best course of action to take," Mace said and bowed his head.
"Margaery won't stand for this," Loras said, and as if on cue, Margaery walked back into the pavilion, her dress dirty and eyes red. "Margaery they..." Loras started but was cut off.
"She already knows," said their grandmother. Loras looked at his sister, not believing what he heard.
"Margaery?" Loras asked.
"I-I do, and I have accepted the proposal." Loras stared at her, disbelief painted on his face.
"But Jon."
"Jon has no say in this," Olenna said. Loras looked at each member of his family before stopping on Garlan.
"Brother, please, you must see this is wrong," Loras pleaded to Garlan, hoping he would be the one to listen.
Garlan sighed, "It's not my place to decide; it's fathers."
Loras stared at his family, eyes filled with confusion and pain. "How can you do this?"
"We need to look out for ourselves. That is all that matters," said Olenna.
"And forsake our honour, side with killers. What will Jon say when he hears about this, we have been his family for almost a decade; what will he think of us?"
Loras looked at his family and could not help but feel ashamed; for a long moment, silence filled the room until Margaery spoke.
"J-Jon left,"
Loras turned to her, "What?"
"Jon left, I told him, and he left."
Loras slammed his fist on the table, "How could you? What has gotten into you, Margaery?"
"She is going to be queen once we reach King Landing," said lord Baelish.
"The crown, you do this because of the fucking crown!" Loras shouted.
"Enough, boy!" Olenna said in a harsh tone; once Olenna snapped, her fingers, and two Lannister thugs entered the room. "Take my grandson to his tent; once he is cooled off, he will rejoin us."
Loras glared at his grandmother; he always knew she was a player of the game and would do what she thinks is necessary to see our family prosper, but this was not it; this was making a deal with the devil. One brute grabbed Loras's arm, but Loras pulled it away; he gave one last disgusted look to his family before storming out of the pavilion.
That night he could not find any sleep, his mind focused on what his family is doing for the sake of power, and he never felt more disgusted to be a Tyrell. The deal with Renly was one thing, he was kind, good, a man who cared for the people, not a spawn of an evil queen, a person who killed people at a whim. He was tempted by the chance to get back at Stannis, but he pushed that thought to the side. He kept thinking about all of that, and soon he found out that he could not bear to be part of it; Jon's brother is fighting for justice, and if he sided with the Lannisters, that would mean he would have to fight his best friends brother and possibly Jon, that is something he would never forgive himself.
Loras decided he would not take part in this anymore; he put his armour on as quietly as possible, packed a bag with things he would need, and finally put his sword on his hip. He moved the canvas door and saw two men at arms standing in front of his tent. "This will not do," Loras thought. He moved back and thought of a way out. Taking his sword, he cut the back of his tent open and snuck his way out. Loras carefully moved between the tents, making sure no one followed him or had managed to see him. When he finally managed to get to the stable, he immediately went to Bluebell.
"It's alright, girl, we are just leaving this place," Loras said as he put the saddle on the horse's back. Once everything was done, Loras took the rains and started leading the horse outside, only to be met by a figure standing at the exit.
"Robar," said Loras in a calm tone.
"Lord commander," Robar said. The knight was in armour just like he was.
"Don't try to stop me from leaving; it's not gone end well for you," Loras said and put his hand at the hilt of his sword.
"That is not why I'm here," Robar replied as he took several steps towards Loras, and Loras could see that the knight had a bag with him just as he did.
"Going home?" Loras asked.
"No, I'm going in the same direction you are going."
"And that would be?"
"Jon."
Loras looked at the knight, confused, "Why would you go after Jon?"
"Ser Jon saved my life, I own him a life debt, honour demands that debt be repaid." Loras knew Robar was an honourable man, and this proved it without a doubt.
"And what will you do once you find Jon? Just follow him."
"That was your plan, wasn't it?" Loras hated to admit it, but Robar was right; that was his plan.
"Get on your horse; we ride," Loras ordered. For a moment, he felt like the lord commander again.
"You know where Jon left?" Robar asked.
"I overheard the soldiers saying he went up the Roseroad," Loras answered.
"I heard the same. You think he intends to join Stannis?"
"I don't know, but let's hope we catch up with him in time."
"He has a good head start," Robar said as he mounted his horse.
"Then we should ride fast," Loras said as he got on his horse, and they rode out of the stables and out of the camp. To their relief, no one had tried to stop them, and they rode out of the camp with ease.
Kings Landing
The survivor
A son of Rhaegar Targaryen so close to Robert Baratheon and did not even know it, he laughed when he first noticed it. He always knew about the relationship between the prince and the she-wolf. It was not hard to put the pieces together, crowning her, writing to her, meeting her in the Riverlands, and finally running off with her. The two spent a year with one another, and something was bound to come out of that relationship, and it did, a boy. The lie that has been told about the kidnapping only worked due to people's stupidity and greed.
Arys might have been mad, but during his reign, the realm was mostly stable, and it did not suffer compared to the rule of the Baratheon's, more specifically, Joffrey. The boy has no regard for human life and would kill whoever he pleased if Cersei and Tyrion were not there to restrain him. He would have probably put half a city to the sword because of that riot if Tyrion were not there.
When he saw Jon Snow, he knew instantly that he was Rhaegar's son; Ned Stark was a good man but not a good liar; it was only due to his integrity that everyone believed that the boy was his bastard and not the son of the prince. The boy looking like his mother did help in that endeavour. The boy had his father's skill, maybe even more than that. If he even doubted the boy's heritage, they were put away once he heard that the young knight had no burn marks from the flaming sword of Thoros of Myr.
Now, with the pieces set, he can finally start his game. Olenna will take the deal Tyrion offers her; the old bat would do anything to see her blood on the throne, which means Jon would have to be moved out of the way. He knew the Tyrells cared too much for the boy, so they won't harm him. They will just push him to the side or banish him. He would have approached the Tyrell's with the truth, but they have proven to be less than trustworthy.
He still remembers that day, the battle, watching helplessly as The Usurper brought his hammer down and killed Rhaegar. At that moment, as he lay down bleeding on the field, he thought that all was lost, and he was ready to accept his fate and join the prince. But the gods, it seems, had other plans for him; a group of Dornish knights dragged his broken body off the field during the retreat. He was in and out of consciousness for a long time; by the time he finally came to, Tywin Lannister had already taken Kings Landing and killed Elia and the children. The fury and hate he felt for Robert Baratheon, Jon Arryn, Ned Stark, Hoster Tully, and Tywin Lannister at that moment he had never felt in his life, traitors and liars all of them. By the time he was in a condition to do anything, Ned Stark had already in Dorne and soon came back with the word of his sister's death and a bastard boy in hand.
The boy will probably go to his family in Riverrun and help them with the war while he will do what he can from here to make sure the boy survives and put the events into motion, knowing Littlefinger will do what he can to destabilize the new alliance for him. The man is smart and ambitious but careless, which was proved by what happened with Lord Eddard. All he must do is to keep his key assets alive and informed; he should probably contact his friends in Essos.
Sansa
Everything felt so wrong, all that she ever dreamed of gone, her father dead, Arya missing, everything was terrible. The night of Stannis's attack, she felt as frightened as the day her father was killed. When she heard that the Tyrells broke the siege all pushed Stannis back, she dared to dream it was Jon and Loras who came to rescue her, but she had no such luck; it was indeed the Tyrells but lead by Tywin Lannister.
The queen kept a watchful eye over her, and Joffrey repeatedly abused her, but she still hoped that someone would come for her, either one of her brothers Robb or Jon. At the ceremony where Lord Tywin was named the saviour of the city and saw Margaery, Garlan, and Lord Mace.
Days past and then one day a servant came telling her that she had been summered by lady Margaery to her rooms, Sansa accepted the invitation and went to Margaery's quarters; she needed to know what happened to Jon and why the Tyrells were all of a sudden in league with the Lannisters.
Sansa came to the door, and the servant opened it, allowing her inside, there she found Margaery waiting for her.
"L-Lady Margaery," Sansa said as she entered.
"Sansa," Margaery said and went to her. "Are you alright?"
"Yes," Sansa said, trying to act normal as best as she could.
"I'm so sorry," Margaery said and embraced her. It felt like forever since anyone did something like that.
"What for?" Sansa asked. She could feel the tears coming.
"For your father," Margaery answered.
"M-My father was a traitor; my brother and mother are traitors too," Sansa said, and Margaery released her and looked at her.
"Sansa, what are you saying?"
"My family are traitors; I'm loyal to the true king Joffrey."
Margaery put her hand on Sansa's cheek, a concerned look on her face. "What did they do to you?"
Sansa could not hold it in any longer; she finally broke into tears, and Margaery embraced her once more.
"We…. Where is my brother? Where is Jon?" Sansa asked. There was no answer for a long moment, so she asked again, "Where is Jon?"
Margaery then finally answered, "I don't know," her voice barely a whisper, but Sansa could notice the sadness in it.
"What do you mean, you don't know. He was with you."
"He was but not anymore; he left," Margaery said, and Sansa broke off and took a step back.
"Why?"
"He had to," Margaery said simply.
"If Jon or Robb isn't here, then what I'm to do?"
Margaery took a step forward and took Sansa's hands into hers. "Stay strong; you will get through this, I swear to you."
"How?" Sansa said, crying.
"I will help you; stay close to me. I will be queen soon, and if you are with me, I can protect you."
Sansa looked at Margaery; she was to be queen, which means she would marry Joffrey. The Tyrells betrayed Jon just so they could have excess to the crown. It infuriated Sansa, but she knew there was nothing she could do about it; Margaery was indeed her best option for safety now. She was starting to hate southerners and wished to have never come down here in the first place.