"Ah, she is clever after all," said Cersei, smirking.
"Wit is such a rare accomplice to beauty yet we
stand, alone, in a room crowded with only that."
Cersei lifted a thick strand of Eleonora's hair, ran it
through her fingers, and dropped it back o...
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A refusal to face reality allows it to stab you in the back. —
"It's beautiful," said Eleonora, ogling the manicured gardens and glistening marble of the Great Sept.
Jaime followed behind her like a good soldier, wearing his armor of the Kingsguard. His hand rested on the hilt of his sword that hung at his waist, rather entertained by his northern counterpart's excitement. She had insisted on visiting the great library within the Sept of Baelor that afternoon, when the sun was high and the air was thick. Jaime could not protest.
Eleonora wore a long, deep blue gown with long sleeves but bare shoulders. Her mother had purchased the fabric for her last nameday. Sansa had helped her stitch flowers along the waist. With patience and a bit of assistance from Septa Mordane, the beautiful cloth transformed into a dress that honored the north-style but was less suffocating in the southern heat. Her hair hung down her back, the waves of black bounced as they climbed the colossal stairs.
"I must have you back to the Keep by dark," said Jaime.
"As you have said," she replied, "many times."
The sept sat atop Visenya's Hill, an hour's walk from the Red Keep. It was an impressive marble dome with seven crystal towers, each of which has bells. Only on momentous occasions, such as the death of a king, are all of them rung. Eleonora's eyes were wide at the beauty of the colored glass windows and sparking marble pillars.
The sept was named after Baelor the Blessed, First of His Name. He had been the ninth Targaryen king to rule the Iron Throne. He wore a crown of flowers and vines as a sign of humility. He sat upon the throne for ten years, pardoned his brother's killers, walked the Boneway barefoot to forge peace with Dorne, rescued the Dragonknight from the snake pit, refused to bed his sister-wife, and performed great kindnesses onto the smallfolk.
He was also a pious man. He died from fasting because of the sins of others. He was rumored to have a desire to force the north away from their old gods and the Iron Islands from their Drowned God. He had kept his three sisters, Rhaena, Daena, and Elaena, confined in the Maidenvault until he died.
"It's almost unseemly to see a northerner visit the sept," said Jaime, "like watching a bird swim beneath the sea."
"You forget half my blood runs Tully. I honor the old gods and the new. Besides, your brother was kind to lend me a book of Ice Dragons when you visited the north," said Eleonora, holding the ancient book against her chest. "I thought it fitting I return it."
"A servant could have accomplished such a menial task just as well, I am quite certain," said Jaime, reaching the top of the steps behind the eldest Stark.
