-Chapter 59-
-POV Tommen Baratheon-
It had been a week since Lady Margaery's departure, and I felt a deep sense of longing mixed with exasperating helplessness.
The little conversations we had gave me the courage to face the tedious meetings and the intrigues of the court nobles, but now that she had been dismissed by Ronnet, I felt an emptiness that could only be filled by Margaery's presence.
'Is this what it feels like when you fall in love?' I thought.
A blow from a staff struck my back, and I heard my instructor's voice say:
"Don't slack off and strike that dummy as I taught you."
"Why?" I asked, in a daze, struggling to control myself.
"To learn how to defend yourself. I thought we agreed on that," he said, looking at me haughtily.
"We don't agree on that, and we don't agree on much. You give orders, and I'm supposed to obey. You're training a little dog, but I'm not your little dog; I am the… KING!" I yelled, loud enough for everyone to hear.
Contrary to what I expected, Ronnet said nothing more and simply nodded before signaling that I could leave.
Surprised by how easily he obeyed me, I wanted to apologize for losing my temper so violently, but when I met his icy gaze, I got scared and ran away without looking back, leaving Ronald with his father in the training yard.
---
-POV Ronnet Connington-
'I knew she had sunk her claws deep into him, but I didn't realize she had gone this far. I'll have to be wary of him and Tywin. They might try to overthrow me,' I thought.
"It's not against you. Lady Margaery's departure hurt him a lot," said Ronald.
"I see that, but it's no excuse for such behavior. I'll remember this," I said before pushing my son to resume his training, which he did without hesitation.
'I'm going to have to start transfusing my blood into Ronald. Since I'm his father, maybe it will give him more advantages than it did Cersei,' I thought.
---
-4 hours later-
I smiled as I took Joanna in my arms, while Cersei, beside me, was nursing our son Rodrik, whom I had named after my own right-hand man, Rodrik, as a mark of respect that deeply honored him. And I said, gently holding my little girl, so beautiful and fragile at just 3 moons old:
"So, are you going to tell me what's bothering you, or will I have to drag it out of you?"
She stayed silent for a few seconds before finally saying, "I learned from Qyburn that you plan to start transfusions on Ronald."
I nodded, seeing nothing wrong with that, and under her insistent gaze, I finally understood what she really wanted to know.
"Oh, you're surprised that I'm not doing the same for your son."
"Our son," she said, truly furious this time, as denying her son was like denying our marriage.
'Even though Tommen remains her son, he is, at best, my stepson,' I thought.
I refrained from contradicting her to avoid starting an argument between us, then I said, turning my eyes away from my wife to focus on my daughter's blue orbs, similar to a frozen pond, which were curiously staring at me:
"I decide how my own blood is used."
"One body, one flesh, one soul—you swore it," said Cersei, refusing to be silenced.
Seeing that she was determined to know the real reason for excluding Tommen from the blood transfusions, I finally said:
"I care a lot about Tommen, but he has an inferiority complex that makes him dangerous. I don't want to increase the threat he poses to me and to House Connington by making him like me."
I could see that my words had probably hurt Cersei, but it was the truth. The dominance I had, beyond the military power and immense wealth I possessed, came from my invincibility. If I lost that, I would become just another lord subject to the Iron Throne like all the others.
'Although I don't yet know if someone can truly reach the same heights as me with my own blood, I won't take that risk,' I thought.
"Have you made your decision?" Cersei said, this time in an indifferent tone. I nodded before she turned away from me without saying anything, continuing to nurse Rodrik.
I could clearly feel her fury and the gears turning in her mind, but in the end, she could do nothing, and she knew it perfectly well.