The Shadow Queen of Tywin Lannister

LI. The Wolf, the Lion & the Dragon

[A/N] - Some more of Tywin, Visenya and Arya to melt your hearts. Arya has indeed drawn their interest, hasn't she?

It makes me think that once this book is over, I make some AU side plots or 'what ifs'. Like 'What if Tywin and Visenya knew who Arya was' or 'What if they took her with them to King's Landing without knowing her identity'. Would you guys be interested in those in the near future?

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Harrenhal, Riverlands - The following morning since Lord Amory was killed.

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The moment the guards were summoned, Tywin took the lead and started to shout orders. Before anyone knew it, guards had started to grab and gather potential suspects or those that Lord Amory had talked to last.

The Mountain had taken it upon himself, the amount of suspects piling up in the main courtyard while others watched; a warning that such attempts would not go unpunished.

By the very next misty morning, men had been hanged and an equal amount of them had been tortured.

Tywin was looking outside the window at the prisoners, his face hard to read. He did not seem to be angry at the attempt, rather pleased by its findings and the fact that someone had tried to take him or Amory down with a single dart.

The very same dart was held by Visenya, who was leaning on the stone wall right next to the window.

"What do you make of it?" he asked her since his dear wife had spent almost a decade studying poisons.

The Dragoness brought the bladed edge of the dart close to her nose, taking a quick whiff of a familiar scent before he studied the dart. "Wolfsbane. Rare to find, even rarer to use. It stops the heart and the lungs, paralyzes and leads to quick instant death" she explained, her eyes not once leaving the simple hand-made dart.

She had heard of people using poison in drinks and food, she even used it in wine. Some might use it with their blades and spears, like the famous Red Viper of Dorne but it was the first time Visenya saw it on a small dart that was meant to be shot through a simple bamboo pipe.

The Mountain stood not too far away and listened. "We hanged twenty men last night."

"I don't care if you hanged a hundred. A man tried to kill me. I want his name and I want his head." Tywin said rather calmly as if his life had not been threatened a few hours ago.

At the same time, Arya was busy setting the table while listening to the conversation without being noticed.

"We think it was an infiltrator from the Brotherhood Without Banners."

A small scoff drew the attention of the men on Visenya, who did not move from her position. "A band of outlaws with a pretentious name, that's all they are. I truly doubt they would have the means or the minds to plan something so delicate and smart"

Tywin had moved towards his chair but had not taken a seat yet. "Either way, we can't allow rebels behind our lines to harass us with impunity. We look like fools and they look like heroes. That's how kings fall" he explained and kept walking past his chair until he stopped right in front of him. "I want them dead, everyone."

"Killing them isn't the problem. It's finding them"

He was amused, mockery visible in his eyes and soon followed in his voice. "Have you gone soft, Clegane? I always thought you had a talent for violence." Before the man could reply, his master continued. "Burn the villages, burn the farms. Let them know what it means to choose the wrong side."