The hall, packed with men who stood along the edges without moving, waiting for this show to come to a conclusion.
I stayed close to Ned as we stepped inside, my paws light against the floor keeping out of sight, but there was no hiding from the attention. Every eye moved. Every gaze lingered.Some curious, others cautious. One with a certain malice.
Cersei stood near the hearth, still and composed, her eyes fixed on me and Ned from the moment we entered. There was no confusion in them, no doubt, only judgment.
Joffrey stood beside her, cleaned and dressed as though nothing had happened, but something had changed. He didn't look at Arya. He didn't look at me. His shoulders sat lower than before, his chin not quite as high.
At the center, Robert Baratheon sat slouched in his chair, a goblet hanging from his hand, looking as though he'd rather be anywhere else than here. He didn't look like a king holding court, rather a man dragged into something he had no patience for.
…
Cersei spoke first.
"That animal set upon our child," she said, "It knocked him down and cast his sword into the river. You would keep such a creature near your children?"
Ned remained unmoved .
"Your son drew a sword," he said. "On a boy."
"That is not the point, Lord Stark" Cersei cut in, quicker now. "It's your hound. You don't get to decide when it acts or who it decides is a threat."
"It decided that."
Cersei's gaze snapped to him, clearly enraged.
"Decided?" she repeated, her voice thinning. "Your filthy hound attacked the Prince of the Seven Kingdoms."
"It stopped him," Ned said. "There's a difference."
Robert, his patience gone, stared Joffrey down. "Well? Did it bite you?"
Joffrey hesitated. "No, but.."
"Did it bite you?"
"…No."
Robert let out a breath through his nose, something close to a laugh slipping out before he could stop it.
"So you had a sword," he said, more leaning forward now, "and the hound didn't even try to hurt you. Still you end up on your back in the mud."
Joffrey flushed. "He came at me from behind..."
"And you let him," Robert cut him off.
Cersei losing her composure, stepped forward.
"This is no jest, Robert."
Robert shot back, "No? Sounds like one to me."
Indignation in her eyes, she spoke in an even tone: "You would sit there and laugh while your son is attacked?"
"He wasn't attacked," Robert said. "He was made a fool of."
The silence that followed was worse than the shouting.
Joffrey didn't speak, his voice was his mother and she uttered with a hardened gaze. "That thing is dangerous."
Ned, unwilling to give an inch countered, "It showed more restraint than most men would have."
That did it.
Cersei turned fully toward him now.
"You presume too much for a man who forgets his place."
Ned didn't respond to that, but Robert on the other hand slammed his goblet down bellowing, "That's enough."
The sound carried through the hall, cutting through everything.
"I'm not killing Ned's hound because the boy played around." He declared.
"Robert"
"I said it's done."
That ended it.
He pushed himself up, not waiting for agreement, not caring for it, and walked out of the hall with heavy steps that echoed behind him.
The tension in the air continued after he left.
It stayed.
Cersei didn't speak again, but the look she gave me was worse than anything she could have said. It wasn't anger in the moment. It was something held back, something stored for later.
I met her gaze for a moment, not challenging, not backing away, just enough to show I understood.
Then she turned, pulling Joffrey with her, leaving the hall.
I looked toward Sansa.
She stood near the back, her face pale, her hands tight around Lady's collar, holding on as though letting go would change something. The wolf stood beside her, calm, alive, unaware of how close everything had come to ending differently.
That alone told me what had changed.
Ned let out a slow breath, the strain showing now that the room had emptied. His hand came to rest briefly on Arya's shoulder before he glanced down at me.
"Come," he said. "We ride at first light."
Outside, away from the gazes, the air felt easier to breathe.
Arya remained closeby, the tension finally leaving her as we stepped away from the hall. Her hand came down onto my fur without hesitation.
"You saw him," she said, a grin breaking through despite everything. "Not so brave, is he? "
I nudged her hand lightly.
The moment passed, but it wouldn't be the end of anything.
They would remember.
I lifted my head, looking south where the road stretched into the dark.
The system flickered at the edge of my vision.
[Level 14]
[Status: The Queen's Enemy]
[New Objective: Navigate King's Landing]
We fell into step as we made our way back toward camp, the sounds of the night settling in around us.
The wolves still alive, the pack whole.
That was good enough for now, but what waited ahead wouldn't be settled with a fall in the mud.