[Chapter Size: 3300 Words.]
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Third Person POV
Winterfell, 298 AC.
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"Do you understand, James, how we're being humiliated by these damned savages, James?!" Cersei growled.
"I know... do you think I'm happy to be here!" James retorted angrily, since his sister had been complaining the entire time.
"They have no respect for us, James... That girl thinks she's even above the queen and Robert... That damn Robert, he's fawning over that girl... and he called her yesterday that whore... that whore Lyanna!" Cersei clenched her teeth with such hatred that it even surprised her brother, not expecting this kind of behavior from Cersei.
"We can't do anything about it, Cersei..." Jaime commented.
"You're just going to let everyone treat us like this, Jaime?!" Cersei seemed outraged.
"What else can we do?!" Jaime growled, obviously they could do nothing there in Winterfell.
"We are children of Tywin Lannister, the most feared man in the Seven Kingdoms. Not the Starks, the savages here, or even those savages beyond the Wall can dictate what we should or shouldn't do! It was Lord Stark who gave you the nickname Kingslayer, will you let them mock us even more?!" Cersei looked at her brother with such wrath it still left Jaime speechless.
He disagreed with some things she was saying, but remained silent, knowing his sister was completely agitated—perhaps from hearing the name of the woman Rhaegar had stolen. She hated Lyanna with all her strength, even without ever having exchanged a single word with Lord Stark's sister.
"We just have to stay together, Cersei... We're at a disadvantage here." Jaime tried to calm his sister and bring some reason into her fury.
Cersei still looked at him with eyes full of rage, but tried to calm down, looking around to see if anyone was listening to their conversation. They were in a hidden corner of Winterfell after Cersei had gone to the main hall with her three children, but upon seeing Jaime, she asked the royal guards to accompany the children and took one guard with her as she went with her brother to have a conversation.
The royal guard was making sure no one came near while they kept the conversation between the two of them.
"Maybe not here... but we can act against them in the South. They won't stand a chance with all the kingdoms against Arctic." Cersei spoke in a calm tone, while Jaime looked at her, not understanding how she could do something like that.
"And how do you intend to do that? You yourself said you didn't want Lord Stark to become the Hand." Jaime commented.
"I know... I would've preferred if father were the Hand, or even you." She said, making Jaime frown; truthfully, Jaime wasn't the most suitable person for that, but his sister always wanted to strengthen the family above all else.
"I don't think he's going to accept being the king's mother." Jaime said.
"I hope not, but maybe I can put something in motion that forces Lord Stark to go south... and even that savage. I doubt she'll keep that superior gaze once she gets to King's Landing..." Cersei said venomously.
Jaime thought she was going too far, taking it too personally, but said nothing. His sister was smarter than him, even if Tyrion always said it was a mistake to trust her—he still let his passion blind him to Cersei's arrogance.
Though some sliver of reason still nagged at his mind.
"Were you able to find out anything about their kingdom during yesterday's conversation, when the girl came to your table?" Jaime asked.
"I... got some information..." Cersei commented, seeming a little lost, though Jaime didn't even notice it.
Cersei knew she hadn't gotten anything from the girl, who dodged her questions or simply didn't answer when Cersei tried to extract something, asking shamelessly.
But Robert always got in the way, telling her to shut up countless times when she was too persistent, which infuriated Cersei, though she still tried to get information. There was a moment when she pushed even harder, and both royal guards from the two kingdoms nearly drew their swords before the Kingsguard intervened.
Cersei hated those two, they practically tried to threaten her by unsheathing their swords, which startled the entire hall, people wondering if they would really fight each other.
In the end, the banquet ended slowly. Arya didn't even excuse herself, saying she was going to bed without caring about the royal family of Westeros, as if they were beneath her. And Robert was complicit in this, giving Arya Stark every reason to act the way she did.
If that already irritated Cersei, what she heard next drove her mad.
'You know, Ned... If Lyanna were alive... she'd be just like that—fierce and determined. I'd give up my crown just to have your sister without that damned dragon having taken her!' Robert said with a melancholic tone, perhaps because he was drunk.
But that was the last straw for Cersei. She wanted to growl, to fight Robert for simply saying that northern whore's name beside her.
Cersei had hated Lyanna ever since Rhaegar chose her instead of Cersei.
Cersei had hated Lyanna ever since Robert called for her on the first night they spent together after the wedding.
And now, all that hatred and armor she had built against a dead woman was manifesting toward Arya Stark.
She was described like that whore, behaved with arrogance and superiority—above her and her children. Unforgivable. All because she had the support of that bastard who once tried to kill her with a bird. When she saw Littlefinger in that miserable state, his face cut, she had felt fear of him.
After all, she too had been hunted by birds. That bastard had sent a letter revealing many things she had done back then to sabotage them. Cersei didn't know how he found out, but she was terrified, and when the bird tried to kill her, she became even more frightened.
She remembered the days of terror she felt in the Red Keep, while the guards hunted birds with crossbows all day long. She escaped several attacks, watching men get hurt in her place, making her live in constant fear, always looking up at the sky for any flying creature that might attack her.
She had begged everyone—her father, the High Septon—and even offered money to kill Jon Arctic, much more than she could actually give, knowing her father would help her if they could bring the head of that savage bastard.
But Jon Arctic already had a solid position in Westeros. He had spread terror, death, and destruction to all who had tried something against him. In the end, no one did the job.
How could a savage bastard from the North be above all of them? She was the Queen of Westeros, and finding out afterward about the deal Robert made with her father drove her even madder.
Her daughter—her precious daughter—was to be handed over to a savage like some whore midwife. She would never allow such a thing and had fought it for years, even though Jon Arctic had shown no interest. Hearing that from the council always infuriated her.
So she succeeded when her father began sending letters demanding that Myrcella be ready to secure a marriage. What right did her father have to decide the future of her daughter? She belonged only to Cersei.
So she arranged something that would ensure she would never have to see Myrcella leave her to live with savages or anyone else. Her daughter would belong only to her...
She seduced a knight and placed her daughter in his path, claiming that Myrcella wouldn't have to go north to live with the savages if she let that man take her virginity. And she wouldn't be raped for the rest of her life to birth savage babies in an ice-covered desert and live a miserable life.
There were many contradictions in the way she viewed Arctic, but deceiving the naive Myrcella was easy when she controlled everyone who lived around her, planting the idea that Jon Arctic was a savage rapist.
Only the king could say otherwise, but he wasn't a very present father, preferring to spend his time with whores and drinking, making more bastards than actually caring for Cersei's children—who weren't even his, but Jaime's.
Obviously, she orchestrated the entire little romance between Myrcella and the unknown knight to become public. The poor man died, but Cersei didn't care about that, and Myrcella claimed she slept with him willingly and gave up her virginity following instructions.
Her daughter's image was destroyed, but as long as she stayed with Cersei, the queen didn't care. She continued punishing in terrible ways anyone who spoke about Myrcella. The girl fell into depression after that, but Cersei always calmed her by saying she'd never again need to worry about going beyond the Wall.
Her father was furious about it, using even low words to describe Cersei, but she laughed at it. She had played the game better than anyone. She had beaten her father, that damned Robert, and the savage bastard who would never have her daughter.
She had been victorious, and that gave her a thrill she had never felt before—the power of defeating everyone in the game of politics. She felt powerful, a sensation she had never truly enjoyed, even as Queen of Westeros.
She wanted to feel that again. She believed she could destroy those savages from the North, and so she would play the game—she would show her father she was better than him and would place House Lannister on a level never seen before.
She believed in it. Without realizing it, Cersei was beginning to be corrupted by the power of controlling everything when she had managed to change her daughter's fate. So, in her mind, she was the perfect person for this—but first, she would have to deal with Robert, the Starks, and everyone else in her way.
She had hated Jon Arctic since he began to draw attention. She hated Arya Stark since the moment she met her, and after that night, she hated her even more.
A queen, younger and more beautiful... She will replace you and take everything from you...
A voice rose in her mind at that moment, catching Cersei by surprise as she remembered very well to whom those words belonged.
The witch of the woods. The one she met—Maggie the Frog.
'You will not marry the prince, child. No. You will marry the king.
Though you may think you'll be queen forever, another shall come... younger, more beautiful. She will take everything you hold dear.
The king will have twenty children... but you, only three.
Gold shall be their crowns, and gold their shrouds.'
'And when your tears have drowned you, the valonqar shall wrap his hands around your pale white throat... and choke the life from you.'
Cersei had been with a friend that day, and to keep those words from spreading, Cersei threw her into a well and killed her.
For a moment, Cersei thought of Arya—she could be the queen who would take everything from her, and she needed to deal with her, to keep her far away from Joffrey. She preferred the older sister—much more innocent and easy to manipulate. She wouldn't be the queen who would take everything from her.
Jaime noticed his sister making some grimaces while lost in thought. He knew Cersei had changed a lot since the previous year. She had grown more interested in talking about schemes, how she would make Joffrey the greatest king in Westeros, and how she would destroy the Arcticans.
But Jaime was driven only by love, rage, and his skill with a sword. He would simply stay by Cersei's side—and have her love.
"So can we deal with them?" Jaime asked, hoping Cersei would give a better answer.
"Of course, Jaime... They're just savages... their reputation is simply overestimated. We'll destroy them all... just like all enemies of the family, and our children will rule the Seven Kingdoms." She spoke slowly, while her hands touched her brother's shoulder in a much deeper interaction than that of siblings.
"Cersei..." Jaime called her attention, looking at the people in the distance, checking if any of them had seen Cersei's gesture, while the Kingsguard kept his gaze forward. He gently removed her hand. "We can't do this in public." He warned.
"Alright... I just miss you. I don't know when we'll be alone again, but I want you, Jaime." She said in a seductive tone.
To Cersei, sleeping with Jaime, her twin, was like sleeping with herself—a deeply narcissistic act. Though when Jaime wasn't around and she needed to satisfy herself, she would choose a different cousin or an uncle with Lannister traits.
Not that he believed that—after all, he was too foolish—but he still loved having her.
In the end, they returned to the main hall, entering the room.
The hall was already somewhat full. Cersei had stopped to talk with Jaime for about twenty minutes, and now, returning to her family, she found her children already seated at the main table, eating.
Joffrey had a bored look, and Cersei's eyes quickly locked onto Tyrion, who was chatting and making Myrcella and Tommen laugh as he sat at the table where he didn't even belong, which immediately irritated the queen.
Lord Stark was at the side of the table with his heir, the youngest son—whose name she couldn't even remember—and Sansa, who was just trying to get Joffrey's attention from her chair.
She said goodbye to her brother Jaime, who sat at another table near the main one, while she immediately fixed her gaze on Tyrion with a fierce expression, saying something like, 'Leave this place immediately and stay away from my children, dwarf.'
Tyrion only sighed, knowing he couldn't deal with his sister, and said goodbye to his niece and nephew before leaving the main table without a word to her, heading to where his brother was seated at another table, as Cersei took her place.
"I don't like it here." Jaime murmured, picking up his first bite of food, while Tyrion looked up.
"You've already said that," he mocked, then continued. "I saw you two talking outside. You seemed rather enthusiastic... Were you talking about our uncle?" Tyrion asked Jaime.
"No, I doubt Cersei would really care about that. She's not the least bit pleased with Arctic and the whole situation, and she'd be even more irritated to know that King Arctic has something that would make our own practically do anything to get that sword..." Jaime commented.
"You're right. After what she did, it's better not to even mention it. Otherwise, she might want to do something to Joy out of that sick resentment she has toward the Arcticans, just to avoid handing the girl over in one piece." Tyrion said with a serious tone, ignoring Jaime's protesting look, who didn't like hearing that.
Cersei knew her sister was changing more and more, becoming increasingly hostile, trying to manipulate everything, as if she were the smartest person in the world. Even Tyrion had to be cautious around her, unsure of what his sister might be capable of doing.
It was at that moment that, to the surprise of many, Robert arrived with Barristan Selmy surveying the area before the king stepped forward, accompanied by another Kingsguard, approaching the main table as the royal guards joined the others.
"Ned, is there no one in this castle to wake me up?" the king roared, while Ned merely greeted him with a good morning and returned to eating as the king came to his side.
The man had been very drunk the previous night. When the banquet finally came to an end, the king had to be carried to his room by several men after drinking even more once Arya left, even going as far as to kick the queen out of the celebration.
Robert simply settled into his seat and began to eat while looking at his friend—and at his three children.
"Where are your other children, Ned? Where's the girl?" Robert asked.
"Rickon is with his mother. Well, she chose to eat in her chambers." Ned replied.
From what he saw, Catelyn had been outraged by what happened the previous night and refused to show up at the main table. He didn't complain about Rickon being with her. After all, she was his mother and he left the boy with her.
He hadn't even had a conversation yet with Cassandra, who was already busy with her duties, ordering the servants to handle breakfast for the royal family and all the guests.
"Arya, on the other hand, is in the godswood. She wakes up early, has her breakfast, and goes to pray," Lord Stark explained.
"Hah... I see. You Northerners and your trees, never change..." Robert laughed, though Ned didn't find it amusing, but could do nothing except look calmly at his friend who had changed so much.
"In any case, let's eat. I want to see those men in the training yard," Robert said, eager to watch some good fights that morning—something he loved, and which surely promised entertainment after the discussion he'd had at the banquet the night before.
"Don't forget to call the girl too. I want to see the skills of those Kingsguard, like they claimed yesterday during that argument with my guards—and I also want to see if your daughter really knows how to use that Valyrian steel sword." he said with enthusiasm.
"Why does a girl like her have that sword? The royal family should be the ones holding it," Joffrey suddenly commented beside his mother. He had seen the sword at the girl's waist yesterday, and a jealous look appeared in his eyes—why did she have it and not him?
"That's true, my son," Cersei smiled upon hearing her son. "A sword like that should belong to you, the crown prince," she suggested, while Robert looked at her and the boy with narrowed eyes.
"That sword belongs to the girl. Don't be idiots." He spoke bluntly.
"Maybe we could strike a deal... Maybe that sword would be better in someone else's hand. Swords weren't meant for women," Cersei still insisted.
"So be it. If you can get her to wager it or something, I won't stop you," Robert shrugged, while Lord Stark frowned, along with his family, upon hearing that.
Cersei, however, gave a rather malicious smile.
Meanwhile, Arya was in the godswood, in front of the heart tree, unaware of the schemes unfolding inside the hall.
After all, she wasn't like Jon, who could simply go about his business and, at the same time, observe through the eyes of animals without losing consciousness—something only Jon could do.
When she used her skinchanging abilities, her eyes went white, and she lost awareness of her real body.
She had taken this moment precisely to pray to the old gods, her faith—not to be constantly spying on everyone.
But she would certainly be surprised by the upcoming events in the yard.
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Author's note here:
Cersei is much more intense here than in the series. Jon drove her nearly mad over the years with the way he acted against her, and her victory over her father and Robert—through that cruel act involving her own daughter—made her even more obsessed with power.
She doesn't see her children as children, but as possessions, with Joffrey being the physical embodiment of the love she has for her own male version, Jaime. That's why, being the heir, he receives more attention than the others.
In short, she's a rotten woman that I hate writing about—her thoughts and cruel actions—but I dedicated this chapter to explore her ambitions and how she's slightly different in this story.
The presence of Arctic has changed Westeros.
-------------Nexts Chapters ----------------
Chapter 289 - Cannibal.
Chapter 294 - Ambush.
Chapter 304 - The Dilemmas of Robb Stark.
Chapter 313 - Reunion.
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