Boys Like You / Tyrion Lannister

6. Little Brother

"I see your stature change. I like the real you Tyrion but I dont know that you do." Rieka remarked. Tyrion stared back at her speechless.

"You are right." Tyrion admitted. "What do I do?"

"You puff your chest to make yourself taller." 

"Maybe I want to be closer to your lips." Tyrion countered. 

"You start your day with a drink, thats a bad habit." Rieka added. 

"Warms my belly." 

"Your smile." 

"What about it?" Tyrion countered. 

"It's cocky." Rieka informed him. 

"You like it though."

"I do," Rieka admitted. 

"You like my flaws you just dont want to admit it because maybe your mother was right and maybe you and I would be good together." Tyrion countered. "I dont know girls like you." Tyrion admitted. "But I want to. All the woman I know... well they would rather be talking to Jaime but you havent looked twice at him yet you sot me out."

"Technically you did. I just didnt run away." Rieka clarified. 

"You like that I'm different, you like that I'm not a pompous prick like Joffrey or arrogant like Jaime. I don't like myself but clearly you dont like yourself either." Tyrion remarked. 

"I like myself. I dont like my mother trying to change me." Rieka corrected, Tyrion nodded. 

"I understand that." Tyrion agreed. 

"I bet you do." Rieka agreed. 

"Girls like you..." Rieka rose a curious brow. 

"Psychoanalyze me." Rieka challenged. 

"Don't belong trapped in the north. You want to explore the world." Tyrion deduced. 

"I do." Rieka agreed. 

"You know I have a drinking game just like this-"

"You drink? No way, never would have known." Rieka mused. 

"You make me smile. You are easy to talk to and clearly you like talking to me." Tyrion decided. 

"Clearly?" Rieka countered. 

"Yes." Tyrion agreed. 

"You like me now because I'm the only girl here thats a suitable age but once you get back to the capital or the rock there will be woman and brothels galore and you will grow bored just like every man ever." Rieka reminded him. 

"YOu dont want to get hurt." Tyrion realized. Rieka shrugged. 

"Who likes getting hurt?" she countered. 

"You like me but you are pulling on my flaws to help yourself see that you dont want me when you do." Tyrion declared. 

"You sound very confident." 

"You like my confidence." Tyrion decided. 

"You really got me figured out huh?"

"I"m sure there is so much more of you to explore." Tyrion corrected. "If you let me." he added. 

"I wanted to hate you." Rieka agreed. 

"But?"

"Prove me wrong about the man I think you will turn out to be." 

'He saw us!' Cersei shouted as she righted herself.

'I heard you the first time.' Jaime remarked he turned to a very nervous Bran. 'Quite the little climber, aren't you? How old are you, boy?'

"Bran?" Rieka called up to him when she saw him stuck. "BRAN!"

'Ten .' Bran said nervously his eyes darting back to Rieka on the ground.

'Ten.' Jaime repeated looking to Cersei.

"I'm coming up, hold on!" Rieka shouted.

"Ten, cersei...." Jaime repeated. But Cersei's stared was harsh.

"RIEKA! RIEKA! RIEKA!" Bran shouted in a panic. Rieka hesitated meeting his gaze.

'The things I do for love.' Jaime remarked shoving Bran out the window. The wolves howled out circling Bran. Rieka fell to her knees and wept holding Bran to her, Tyrion looked up to the window seeing the whisp of golden hair in the window. 

+

"How is he?" Tyrion questioned. 

"The maester said he is going to live but he wont be able to use his legs." Rieka whispered as she sat on the floor at the bottom of Bran's bed. 

"But he will live?" Tyrion clarified and Rieka nodded. 

"His skull wasnt harmed... I should have forbid him from climbing..."

"This isnt your fault." Tyrion reminded her. "Come, have something to eat, I dont think you left his chambers at all since the fall." Tyrion offered her a hand. 

"I'm not hungry, thank you for checking on him." Rieka whispered. 

"I was more checking on you." Tyrion corrected. Rieka's sad face filled his mind as he headed to the banquet hall, the starks had been seen less and less since Bran's fall, they were in his room or Robb and Rieka were tending to Rickon. The youngest Stark was so confused he sobbed into Rieka asking her constantly if Bran was waking up, when he waking up. Rieka wanted to sob with him. They had to keep praying. 

''Time for breakfast. Bread. And two of those little fish. And a mug of dark beer to wash it down. And bacon, burned black.' Tyrion remarked looking over the food.

'Little brother.' Jaime remarked. 

'Beloved siblings.' Tyrion said smirking back at them, he picked up his beer and put it back down. He didnt need to start the day with a drink, Rieka was right, he could make some changes. 

'Is Bran going to die?'' Mycella questioned

'Apparently not.' Tyrion told her picking at his food.

'What do you mean?' Cersei questioned, her eyes darting to Jaime.

'The Maester says the boy may live.' Tyrion told them and Cersei sucked in a breath trying to remain calm.

'It's no mercy, letting a child linger in such pain.' Cersei told him.

'Only the gods know for certain. All the rest of us can do is pray. The charms of the north seem entirely lost on you.' Tyrion remarked.

'I still can't believe you're going to the wall. It's ridiculous even for you.' Cersei told him. 'what would mother say?'

'Where's your sense of wonder? The greatest structure ever built, the intrepid men of the Night's Watch, the wintry abode of the White Walkers.' Tyrion mused.

'Tell me you're not thinking of taking the black.' Jaime teased and Tyrion scoffed.

'And go celibate? The whores would go begging from Dorne to Casterly Rock. I just want to stand on top of the Wall and piss off the edge of the world.' Tyrion assured them. Damnit Rieka was right about him, he could stop that too. Stop whoring... he could reduce it, if he was wed he wouldnt need to pay for whores, he would have a wife... a gorgeous wife if he wed Rieka like his father and her mother wanted. He shouldnt be thinking such things while Rieka was so sad but his mind went to her. 

'The children don't need to hear your filth. Come.' Cersei said leading her children away from the breakfast table, Tyrion's eyes followed them as he brought his cup to his lips. He needed a drink after dealing with Cersei for any amount of time, that wasnt his fault. 

''Even if the boy lives, he'll be a cripple, a grotesque. Give me a good clean death any day.' Jaime remarked.

'Speaking for the grotesques, I'd have to disagree. Death is so final, whereas life... Life is full of possibilities. I hope the boy does wake. I'd be very interested to hear what he has to say.' Tyrion remarked.

'My dear brother, there are times you make me wonder whose side you're on.' Jaime said down to him. Tyrion offered a coy smile.

'My dear brother, you wound me. You know how much I love my family.' Tyrion reminded him.