MOONSHINE ○ JAIME LANNISTER

خمسة عشر

There is nothing but the sense of grandiose and extravagance as Flora situated her eyes on the great expanse of King's Landing. She sees the limestone walls and the Lannister guards on top, looking for any sign of threat as her and the rest of the court return to the capital, all shrouded under carriages either drawn by horses or people themselves. She was alone in hers, looking out at the scenery, appreciating the vast green before her, as Flora knew all too well that inside, it was full of cold stone and marble.

"You okay there, princess?" The man riding the horse up front asked loudly, calling for her attention.

"Alright, thank you very much!" Flora replied, smiling to herself as she played with the threads of her dress. Much to her dismay, Maia, her handmaiden, had suggested that Flora choose more suitable, more modest as compared to her other choices of fashion. She then thought it useless to protest, for Maia was right truthfully. So for the first day, she had packed Flora an olive green dress that was made of opaque satin, yet still exposed her back, a trademark of her family.

"You don't even mind the smell? We're almost there, can you tell?" The man reminded Flora again of her surroundings, and then the subtle smell of horse shit and urine attacked her nostrils, forcing her to repress the urge to gag and vomit all over the carriage. She had heard stories of the odor that surrounded the gleaming capital before, but not once had she imagined an odor as pungent and as revolting as the one she was breathing in right now. It was getting stronger as she grew closer, and a sudden sense of dread enveloped Flora, a feeling she couldn't shake off.

It was that she was afraid of never being the same. She knew herself, she knew that she was old enough to make decisions, but she had never planned this; all she wanted to do was the live the rest of her life on her tiny little island, hoping nothing would bother her. Yet here Flora was, on a carriage slowly riding to her own doom, and she could do absolutely nothing about it.

"Daydreaming seems, yet again, a hobby of yours." Jaime's voice broke her out of her reverie, surprising Flora as she turned to the window across her and smiled. She could see him walking beside his horse as he took turns looking ahead and at her.

"You didn't alarm me of how bad it smelled here." She reprimanded him right away, inching closer to the other side of the carriage, closer to him. She could see that he was tired. They had been travelling the whole day now without any breaks, and the sun was beginning to set. His face was set in a frown and his breathing a little erratic. "Will you not come in and rest?" She gestured quickly towards all the empty space.

"Rest? Or do you mean-" She pressed a finger to his lips, looking at his eyes expressively, with an intention not at all innocent. He stared at her, absentmindedly walking as they approached. There was no sound except for the horses and chatter from yonder. In this space, Flora only focused and him, and he only focused on her.

"Okay, let's count a few seconds and see-"

The loud blaring of horns surprised the both of them as Flora jerked away, looking towards the source of the loud sound. The gates of King's Landing were much larger than she expected, a giant pair of wooden doors that only seemed to implicate a message of intimidation and cruelty, and not one of a prospering and happy kingdom at all. Her mouth gaped slightly at the sheer size of it, and as her carriage passed through it, with Jaime at her side, the smell that she so hated only grew stronger.

"It'd be best if you closed your windows now." Flora turned her head to look at him as he spoke, and she could see the telling look on his face, as if he knew better than her about the wanderings of the capital. And to be completely frank, he did.

"Why?" Flora mused, not seeing the need to close the window if that meant she wouldn't be able to keep an eye on her lover.

It was if it was planned, that it was to be expected. A throng of people that came out of nowhere approached her carriage immediately, all in torn garb and masking gaunt faces. They looked at her from the other side of the carriage, and before she could look back at Jaime, they were so close, their hands reaching out and touching her face as if she was a deity.